


Lifeline

by Fangirl0At0Heart



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Angst, Because that book sucked, Canon Divergence, F/M, I wouldnt worry about it too much though, Injury, Lucius Malfoy Being an Asshole, Lucius Malfoy's A+ Parenting, Minor Violence, Parabatai, Parabatai Bond, Parabatai Feels, Protective Siblings, Shadowhunters are BAMF, Siblings, Single Parents, This book is my finger to the Cursed Child, Valentine Morgenstern Being an Asshole, Vampires, Werewolf Turning, there is blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-09
Updated: 2018-08-21
Packaged: 2019-03-29 04:28:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 24,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13919367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fangirl0At0Heart/pseuds/Fangirl0At0Heart
Summary: After the war, the Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts are both recovering. But after the trial of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, two aurors find something interesting investigating Malfoy Manner.Who is this strange boy found in a hidden room without windows or doors?  And why was he so terrified?Found screaming 'Don't send me back', and 'Just kill me!' the boy was clearly broken and hurt. And what is this? A secret squib sibling of Draco Malfoy, calling themselves... a Shadowhunter?Just how will this story unfold?





	1. The Hidden Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While searching Malfoy Manner, two aurors find something very interesting.

**Third Person POV**

Only days ago, Harry Potter had defeated Voldemort, for good this time. With no more horcruxes to protect him, he was completely, and irreversibly dead. Since then, the ministry had been rushing to capture all the Death Eaters he had left behind and bring them to justice. Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy had both been arrested. Draco had been let go on account of his age... and it didn't hurt that Harry Potter claimed the boy had saved his life once, refusing to identify him when he was captured and brought to Malfoy Manner. Lucius had been sentenced to life in Azkaban. Narcissa's crimes were great, in spite of her lie to the Dark Lord about Harry Potter's death. Even then, that had only been for personal gain. She made that lie only because Harry told her that the Malfoy heir lived. Had Draco been dead, she surely would have revealed him. And again, even then, though unknown to the ministry and to Harry, and even to Draco, she had not done this as an act of motherly love. The Malfoy line was long and powerful, and Draco was the only real heir to it. Narcissa had been given the same sentence as her husband, though her cell wasn't as high security (not that it mattered much in Azkaban).

Currently, two aurors were examining Malfoy Manner. The manner, after examination, would fall to Draco, though he wasn't planning on staying there, as no memories he had there, even that of his childhood, were hardly cheerful. Besides, after Hogwarts finished with repairs (they suspect early September) he, and many others, were returning to Hogwarts to re-do their previous year. As for his current living arrangements... well, hearing that he had no place to stay, Mr. and Mrs. Tonks took him in, in spite of already taking care of their grandchild Teddy until Harry was mature enough to look after him. But, seeing as they were actually family (though they hadn't properly met until this) it wasn't all that far fetched. The two aurors searched through the manner.

"What are we hoping to find?" Asked Evelyn Moonstone, a kind woman with dark brown hair and brown eyes in her mid-thirties, she was slightly larger than average, large enough to have stretch marks on her belly, but her beautiful face more than compensated for that. In spite of her job and how good she is at it, she had a motherly air about her, smile lines crinkling by her eyes even now as she frowned.

"Nothing specific, just anything with dark magic." Replied her partner, Jackson Firehearth. He was a bit of a trickster, which was strange with how much he cared about helping other people. His hair was naturally scarlet, contrary to accusations about hair dye. His eyes were green and amused, and he was tall and scrawny with a sharp chin. He was handsome, but his mischievous smile was off putting, making others weary around him.

Both Evelyn and Jackson wore black cloaks, concealing their normal clothing. Their small conversation was cut off by a faint scream. Both looked up, now alert. They were in a living room that didn't feel very welcoming, with a cold fireplace that clearly hadn't been used in years, stiff leather furniture, and dusty old books. The wall with the fireplace was where the noise came from. Evelyn pointed her wand at it. "Disolvor!" The wall evaporated, and Evelyn and Jackson gaped at the sight that greeted them...

There, in a small room with no windows or doors, only a small hole to put food through, lay a shaking and sickly boy. He was maybe eighteen, though he was unnaturally pale. Clearly he hadn't been in the sun for far to long. He was clothed only in battered shorts, so skinny the outline of his rib cage was visible. There were nasty, jagged scars scattered over his body, and he slept on the cold stone floor. His thick slightly discolored blonde hair covered his head, matted and crusted in dry hair that looked as though it had been there a while. It seemed he was having a horrific nightmare, as he thrashed and screamed in his sleep. Evelyn rushed to him, Jackson soon behind her. She shook his shoulder, trying to wake him. They didn't know what they were setting off...

**Strange Boy's POV**

I was cold. Not surprising, I was barely covered. But even shivering in cold, I felt someone was shaking me. I was fine. Nothing they could ever do to me would ever compare to my time there. They hadn't fed me the last few days. I was fine.

Then I wasn't. Someone was shaking me. They never hurt me physically. They never came in here. They left me in solitude, cold and hungry and alone. They never came in here. Terror struck me. They were sending me back. Terror struck me.

And I was falling.

Down, down, down... down a rabbit hole...

_No!_

"NO!" I screamed. My eyes snapped open. I thrashed, and someone was holding me down. "DON"T TAKE ME BACK!" I'd rather die then go back. Death. "KILL ME!" I screamed, begged. "Just kill me!" I was sobbing now, desperate. "DON'T TAKE ME BACK!" I tried fighting, but I wasn't strong enough. I couldn't see the people above me. "Stupify!" And then I was asleep again. And then I was falling again.

_Down, down, down..._


	2. "Poppy?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The strange guy wakes up.

**Third Person POV**

"You found _what_ there?"

Draco Malfoy was shocked. He couldn't beleive what he was hearing. Sure, his parents were seriously messed up. They only even had him because they needed an heir, and often didn't talk to him for days on end. They only even spoiled him like they did because so long as they did it, he promised not to annoy him. Still... it was quite the stretch from that to this. A human being! A living, breathing soul held captive, cold and hungry, in the same building he had been living in for his seventeen years of life! Oh no... no one had been there for the past few days... he had been starved! Yet... he still believed it. The past few years had really damaged his already poisoned view of his parents.

"You really didn't know about this?" Evelyn Moostone asked him, frowning with confusion and concern for the guy she had found.

"No, gosh, I swear I had _no_ idea!" And he didn't. If he did, he surely would have set the poor guy free. Even before he started trying to be better. Since his parents had gone to Azkaban, he was trying to be nice, no longer having them whispering in his ear and influencing his decisions. It also helped that his aunt - Andromeda Tonks - had refused to turn a blind eye since he came to stay with her a few days ago. As soon as he had walked through the door, she had been quick to sort him out. She was quick to scold him when he had a snide comment or a prejudice thought, but balanced it by treating him with love and acceptance, making sure he knew he was welcome and that she only had his best interest in mind. He still had some old habits to break and a lot to learn, but he was doing his best, and that was good enough. He was making progress.

Now, in the doorway of the same people who took him in, he heard this about his old guardians. Something in his tone must have reflected his honesty, because it visibly convinced the auror.

"Well then, I suppose I should go and check up on him..." She said. Draco told her to wait.

"I know the ministry is more than capable of handling any bills from St. Mungo's, but take it out of my parents money. And yeah I can do that, it's basically mine now." She looked shocked, but soon her face was grateful.

"Thank you. But actually, as St. Mungo's is so far, we just took him to Madame Pomfrey at Hogwarts. We figured since there aren't any students there currently, it would be alright. Still... we'll keep what you said in mind." Then she left.

**Strange Boy's POV**

I was warm... That was new. Being warm. Memories from before struck me, and I nearly screamed in panic... but then I heard movement around me. Movement? I was not alone, there was someone else here. I wasn't there, I _couldn't_ be... and I knew I wasn't in Malfoy Manner anymore... So where _was_ I?

Hmm... slowly, curiously, I opened my eyes. I was being cautious, perhaps overly cautoius, but I felt justified in being paranoid, given stuff that I had been through. There was a woman in a nurse uniform moving around me... she hasn't noticed my open eyes yet, and I had a feeling she was trying not to disturb me. It was strange, and I knew that. I did not know this woman, but something about her face, the shape of her eyes, was very familiar, but I was unable to place it... in honesty, I didn't really try. I was so relieved that I wasn't back in there, I couldn't even think straight. I almost wanted to cry I was so relieved, but... I didn't want to scare the nurse.

"H-hi..." my voice was hoarse, my throat dry, but it worked. She turned, slightly startled.

"Oh, your finally awake I see. Drink this, here," she spoke in a no-nonesense tone, but somehow still mages to be reassuring, an earnest and trustworthy expression addourning her face. She helped me sit up before I could even process her words, she was helping me sit up, and handing me a glass of water. My muscles were weak from so long of barely using them at Mafloy Manner, so she had to help me hold it. My throat wasn't as bad as before now, but it tasted a bit interesting... I suspect there was medication in it. Once I had finished the contents of the glass, she took it from me and held it.

"There was a muscle growth potion mixed in there, it's only used for recovering annerexics, but I think this is a valid exception. You'll have to continue taking some at regular intervals for the next week, and don't worry, there are no side effects. You should be at amazing health by the time I'm done treating you. I also mixed in some anti-depressence in there, having heard of your little episode before you were brought to me. Oh, and my name is Poppy Pomfrey, though for youth such as yourself, I prefer the title Madame Pomfrey. Can you tell me your name?" She spoke very fast, but only the last little bit stuck with me. _Poppy?_ Poppy _Pomfrey?_

"Poppy?" I asked in a shaky voice. She looked at him with a calculating gaze, curious. But I saw it now. The familiar air that I had been unable to place, it made sense now.

"Yes," she answered. "Have you somehow heard of me?" "Poppy," I repeated, not a question this time, "Poppy, it's me..."

She just stared. Could she not see me? Was I not there? She was older now, much older. It scared him. Had I really been in that place so long? Had I truly been forgotten? "It's _me_ ," I said again. "It's Hunter Clement."


	3. Familiar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evelyn is really worried about the guy her and Jackson found.

**Third Person POV**

"Morpheus!" Red light flashed, and instantly 'Hunter' was out like a light.

Never in all her years had Poppy Pomfrey incapacitated a patient of hers, certainly not by using the _comatose_ spell! But as soon as this strange boy had said the name, it became crystal clear. Yes, the boy was thinner, and had clearly been through a traumatic event, a burden Hunter had never had to bear. But somehow, this boy captured Hunter in his exact likeness!

No... this wasn't real, this was a sick joke, Lucius Malfoy having one last laugh! Oh, if he wasn't in Azkaban she would have his head!

She looked at the boy in despair, remembered the funeral had for him with the empty coffin. And empty box burried as a monument to him.

Unsure of why she cared enough to, she helped him lay back down to ensure that his neck didn't hurt from sleeping while sitting up. As she finished that, Minerva walked in.

"Did he wake?" She asked. Poppy nodded silently, hiding her face from her friend as silent tears escaped her eyes. Minerva frowned, wondering if something was wrong.

"Poppy? What is it, what's happened?" Poppy sniffled, and Minerva walked up to her. "Poppy?" Minerva placed a hand on the nurses shoulder. Poppy have up and turned to her, revealing her crying face. Minerva's eyes widened.

"Are you al-"

"Look at him!" Poppy cried out, waving her hand in the boys direction. Minerva barely spared him a glance. "Look at what?"

"At him!" Poppy wailed. "Look!" She pulled out an old and faded wizarding photograph of herself, Hunter, and Evelyn. The all waved at the photo, smiling widely. Poppy held it next to the boy, and Minerva's eyes widened. She focussed on the boy, as if seeing him for the first time.

"It can't be..." She whispered. Poppy looked at her photograph, then at her patient.

"No. It can't be. So it probably isn't." Each word was clipped, precise. Minerva looked at Poppy in shock.

"What? But-"

"But nothing, Minerva. It's just Lucius's sick idea of a last laugh, oh, how hilarious it must be for him!" Poppy tried futily to brush it off, as if she hasn't been affected. But Minerva knew, oh, she knew.

"Poppy..." her face drifted to the boy on the bed. "They never found a body..."

Poppy stiffened and turned to her friend. Then to the boy. "No." She agreed. "They didn't. They never found a killer either, apparently." She spoke in a stiff tone, not daring to hope.

Minerva sighed. "No... but perhaps we should look into this before dismissing it."

**_***_ ** _**Meanwhile with Evelyn and Jackson...***** _

Evelyn sighed, pacing around the double office her and Jackson shared.

"You're going to wear out the floor doing that." Jackson said, not looking up from his book.

"I told them to Madame Pomfrey to keep me posted, we should have heard something by now... is he ok? What if something happened?" Evelyn kept rambling, very obviously panicking. Jackson sighed, having been hearing this for over an hour.

"I'm sure he's perfectly fine." He said, not really worrying at all.

"But what if he's not," she countered. Jack finally gave up on ending the conversation, putting a nlbookmard in his book, setting it aside, and looking up with a tired expression adorning his face.

"If your so worried then just go see him!" As he spoke, he threw up his hands in exasperation.

"But if he's fine then it will seem like I'm overreacting." Her tone was fussy.

"YOU _ARE_ OVERREACTING!" Jack shouted. Evelyn jumped, startled by the change in volume, looking at her companion with wide eyes, her pacing coming to an abrupt start. He sighed, wiping his hands over his eyes.

"It has hardly been a day, and your acting as though he's dying." For a moment, Evelyn just looked at him. The she sighed as well, and looked down.

"You're right..." she mumbled. Her next words came in a very tired and worn out tone, "I know you right." Her voice was soft as she came to the reluctant acceptance. Jackson nodded.

"Why is it bothering you so much anyways? You just met him yesterday, and you couldn't even have a conversation with him... you don't know him."

Evelyn looked up sharply. Jack leaned away, surprised by the reaction. Evelyn Barry even noticed this, though, so consumed by her emotions that she was unable to think straight.

"Are you honestly _kidding_ right now!" She shouted, throwing her hands up in frustration. Jack's eyes widened. "You were there! You saw how he was! Starved, forgotten, cold, scared, held _captive_! How could I _not_ care? He was screaming for death, terrified! Why don't _you_ care?" She accused, glaring coldly at him. He stood, his eyes narrowing.

"Of course I care! But your the one acting like this is the first case like this you've seen! Well guess what, it isn't! It's part of the _job_ , that's _why we both have this job!_ To help cases like this! But your acting differently about him, like you weren't expecting anything like this!" His words struck Evelyn hard, because honestly, she didn't know why.

She just knew that from the second she saw him, she felt protective of him. Seeing him broken as she had, it nearly broke her... but she didn't know _why_.

There was just something about him...

Something familiar...


	4. Hunter Clement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More backstory on some characters (mostly Evelyn).

**Third Person POV**

 

Evelyn looked at her empty house for a moment. The wound of divorce was still fresh. Jackson and all her other friends had been very supportive of her, but even they could not permanently ease the silence of her home that was constantly present. It had been years in the making. They had loved each other, at a time, but he had never supported her job as an auror. Finally, he had decided that so long as she had such a dangerous job, he could no longer sit there and worry for her constantly. And she understood. It saddened her, but she understood.

At some point this week, she would be changing her surname back to what it was before she had been married, and leave the name 'Moonstone' behind. She nearly cried thinking of it, but it had to be done... she could never move on with that constant reminder of him.

Without thinking of a location as to where she would be going, she left the house, wanting to escape the silence.

***

Evelyn walked into the hospital wing at Hogwarts, going right to John Doe's side. (John Doe was a name used for unidentified persons). She was there, by his bedside, staring at the face that was more familiar than it had any right to be. She continued to stare, trying to force her mind to make the connection out of sheer force if will. _Why_ did he look so familiar? She wanted the answers so badly it was infuriating! She stayed there for over a minute, simply staring at him with a frown on her face, trying to force everything into clarity.

She then noticed something on the small table next to his bed... It was a photograph, face down. Curiously, Evelyn picked it up.

She then froze, muscles tense.

Her heart felt like it dropped to her stomach. The photo slipped from her fingers, fluttering to the floor, and suddenly, it was difficult to breath. The room was spinning around her, and in a moment of vertigo, her feet slipped from under her. She fell, crashing into the ground with formidable force.

The photograph. A picture of her and Poppy and Hunter. Oh, Hunter...

Struck by shock and panic from the revelation, her head, which she had hit in her fall, could no longer hang on to her consciousness...

**_***Some Time Later***_ **

 "Evelyn!"

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard her name called, followed by footsteps fast approaching her. Her murky brain processed this, but didn't remember how to respond. Where was she? Ugh... She was lying down... there was a cold, hard surface beneath her. Was she on the floor?

Someone was calling her name and shaking her shoulder. Was that Poppy's voice?

Wait... Poppy...

Hunter!

Before Evelyn could even think about it, she snapped her eyes open, and she sat up as quickly as possible. These were both actions Evelyn instantly regretted.

"AH!" She screamed in pain, forgetting why she had sat up in the first place. The light burned her eyes, and her head whirled with dizziness and pain. Where was that high pitched ringing in her ears coming from? Some part of her brain managed to register that Poppy was kneeling on the floor next to her. Poppy had her hands on Evelyns back and collarbone, keeping her upright.

"Careful," Poppy chided lightly. "You hit your head really hard, I suspect a concussion, which I can give you a potion for.... Oh, I'll need to give you some medicine for that nasty cut..." Poppy wasn't so much talking to Evelyn as she was making a checklist for herself. Evelyn blinked, still in a daze, as her eyes began to adjust. Miraculously, a part of her mind still functioning managed to register Poppy's words. Cut?

Confused and still trying to remember how to function properly, Evelyn reached up, tenderly probing the back of her head. Gentle as she was, the slight pressure managed to hurt just a bit. Her fingers now felt warm and wet, and sure enough when she pulled them away, there was a sticky red substance on her fingers. Blood... blood, fresh from her veins. She turned slightly, adjusting both her neck and her spine to get a look behind her. There, all around the floor where her head had been, was a puddle of her blood. Some of it was fresh, but much was now dry and crusted onto the floor. Evelyn realised she must have been there a while before Poppy had found her just now.

"Evelyn?" Poppy's voice was careful. "Can you tell me what happened to you?"

 _What had_ _happened_ _to her?_ She blinked a moment. Then - _oh_ _!_

Memories resurfaced, hitting her with the force of a truck. Gasping in a breath, her eyes widened and focussed upon the bed where Hunter now lied. He was exactly the same. Perfectly preserved, there he lay, the same as when she had last seen him that day, that horrible day when everything changed. Then Evelyn realised. The photo...

"Evelyn?" Poppy asked once more, and now Evelyn acknowledged her. She turned to her once-friend, tears forming in her eyes as the new betrayal stabbed her in the heart. Poppy was shocked by the look Evelyn now gave her.

"Evel-"

"You knew." Evelyn's voice was weak, a meager whisper. Poppy frowned.

"What did I know?"

Evelyn just stared. Then she got mad. How dare Poppy play the fool.

Not caring that it was a bad idea, Evelyn stood, the pain effectively dulled by her anger. Poppy sputtered, trying to tell her to take it easy, but that just made Evelyn even more enraged.

"You _knew_ he was Hunter! You _knew_ and you didn't tell me!"

Poppy froze. How had she-?

Oh. _Oh!_ The photograph! Poppy's eyes went wide as she realised the error of her ways. She had left to photograph on Hunter's bedside table...

Standing as well, Poppy held her hands tentatively in front of her.

"Now, Evelyn -"

"Why didn't you tell me?" She demanded. "I have more of right to know than you! I'm his _sister!_ So why didn't you tell me, you _stupid wench!_ "


	5. Sister

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evelyn gets Poppy to wake up Hunter.

**Third Person POV**

 

_**Previously...** _

_Standing as well, Poppy held her hands tentatively in front of her._

_"Now, Evelyn -"_

_"Why didn't you tell me?" She demanded. "I have more of right to know than you! I'm his_ sister! _So why didn't you tell me, you_ stupid wench! _"_

_**Now...** _

Poppy had never seen Evelyn so angry, except for when Hunter had first gone missing. She stood, frozen, as Evelyn walked toward her, tears and rage evident on her face. _I'm being paranoid_ , Poppy told herself. _She won't actually hurt me_.

And she would not. If she was willing, she would have done that back when Hunter had first gone missing. But Evelyn had never wanted to hurt Hunter that way, no matter her feelings towards Poppy.

"Evelyn, listen..."

"Only if you explain why you didn't tell me!"

"How could I?" Poppy screamed. Evelyn paused at her tone. "He was found in the house of Lucius Malfoy! I had no way of knowing if it is truly him or not!"

"And you didn't think I would want to at least try and find out?" Evelyn asked. " I don't care if it is him or not, it is still his face! You should have told me!"

Poppy looked down. Evelyn was right, and they both knew it. They also both knew she was lying. Poppy didn't keep this from Evelyn to spare Evelyn's feelings, Poppy just did it to spare herself. Because if it was Hunter... then that meant that all that pain, all that mourning, had been unnecessary. They could have found him. They never even really lost him.

Evelyn looked at her brother with a heavy heart. He hadn't changed. It was still him. She knew. She knew that this was her brother. She reached out and touched his face.

"Why isn't he waking up?" She murmured... Poppy looked down. "Well..." Poppy had guilt laced into her voice. Evelyn looked up sharply, a fire burning in her eyes. "What did you do?" Her voice was deadly calm, and oh Merlin it was scary. Poppy squirmed nervously. The way she was acting today, almost like she was the same age as Hunter again. She could almost convince herself they had gone back in time, and were fighting over something stupid. But she glanced to the side and saw her and Evelyn's reflection in the hospital wings window, and knew that wasn't true.

"I-I um... I may have put the coma spell on him... after he said his name..."

...

" _WHAT!?_ " Evelyn yelled. Poppy winced at the volume, but Evelyn didn't care. "You-you talked to him, and then you used the morpheus curse on him?" Evelyn could swear, she was seeing red by now.

"Well... yes." It was a weak answer, and they both knew it.

"Well take the curse off!"

***

Harry and Hermione were both staying at the Weasleys for now. Harry might be staying there until he goes to live by himself, actually, now free of the Dursleys. Of course, he and Ginny were on entirely different floors, and there were numerous restrictions in place to ensure the couple didn't... you know.

Until they were a few years older, Teddy was staying with his grandmother.

Hermione, however, was only there until she could track down her parents, and lift the memory curse put on them. Her and Ron were also on entirely different floors, and again, there were restrictions in place.

George was... well, he was currently living in the joke shop. He was coping, but... he was very hurt.

Anyway, the trio knew something was up. The adults kept talking about something. And it seemed they were about to find out _what_ , when the adults called them all down for a sort of meeting.

"So..." Arther began, "the other day, some aurors were searching Malfoy Manner. And... well... they found something interesting."

All the kids were paying attention now.

"What-" Hermione's voice was hoarse, no doubt she was remembering her last visit to that wicked place. "What did they find?"

All occupants of the room who didn't know leaned forward in anticipation.

None expected the answer.

"They found a person."

***

 **Hunter's** **POV**

It was dark. The reason I didn't immediately realise that was because my eyes had been closed. I could not move yet though, even now being awake. My eyes refused to listen to me and open. The term 'sleep paralysis' came to mind. Comatose people who had not used their muscles in so long, their brain was unable to remember how at first. Or at least, I think that is what it means. I tried to move anyway, trying to remember how. I felt my finger twitch. _Okay... try the eyes now..._

I opened them, and immediately regretted the decision. _To bright!_ I snapped them shut. _Try again._ I did, blinking slowly this time. It was all blurry and unfocused and dull, but after blinking a few more times, my sight came back to me. My other senses were still unfocused though, which is why it took me a few seconds to realise someone was repeating my name. _Hunter, Hunter, Hunter..._

"Hunter!" And I _knew_ that voice. Somehow... I _knew_ that voice. I tried to focas on it, looking for the souce. I found it, and oh, it was her. _Hunter..._

"Evelyn?" I asked in a croaky, dry voice. It was her. My sister, older and bigger with grey hairs and tears in her eyes, but still my sister. "Evelyn?" I asked again, my voice stronger now.

"Hunter!" She cried, throwing her arms around me in a tight hug. With some effort, I returned the embrace. From the corner of my eye, I saw Poppy standing in the corner, a wand in her hand.

Evelyn pulled away. She looked at me.

"Is it really you?" I knew why she asked. They were all older, older than I thought they would be. I had been _there_ a long time, but I knew I was the same age. But it was me. But if she didn't beleive me... no, she had to believe me.

I _needed_ her to believe me.

"Yeah," I said. "Yes, it is me."

She stared.

"Then what _happened_?"

 **Hey guys! I hope you liked the chapter :3** ****

**Love** **you** **all! <3**  
**\- Kaylee**


	6. What Happened?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunter tells them a bit about where he was, but he doesn't really know.  
> They decide that they need to speak with the Malfoy's.

**Third Person POV**

"I- " Hunter was about to answer when he noticed the blood. Red and matted into Evelyn's hair, it was a miracle he had missed it so obliviously. It was very obvious, and right there. Evelyn and Poppy stared at him, waiting for an explanation

"You're hurt," was all he said. They both frowned, Evelyn with a confused look, and Poppy because he was right, but Evelyn had refused medical attention before the awakening of her brother. "What are you- _oh!_ " With a start, Evelyn realised she had never had her head wound healed.

Evelyn turned to Poppy, momentarily forgetting she was angry with the nurse. "Can you... ?" Though the question had not been properly voiced, Poppy knew what she meant, and waved her wand with a healing spell. The gash quickly closed itself, but there was still blood everywhere, and Evelyn might need a potion for what she had lost.

They used 'Scourgify' to clean up the blood, and Poppy gave Evelyn a small sip of a potion. Throughout all this, they had answered a few questions for Hunter, a bit of whats been happening.

"So... You-Know-Who is dead? For good?" He was both relieved and fascinated by this information.

"Yeah, amazing isn't it? Harry Potter beat him for good about a week ago." Evelyn had a breathless smile on her face, more than overjoyed to be the bearer of good news. But at her conformation, something changed on Hunter's face. Was he... eager?

"Potter? James' son? Oh, did he marry Lily? Is she the mother?" The questions came fast with his excitment, he almost didn't notice how his mentioning if James and Lilly made both Evelyn and Poppy look down. Almost didn't. "What? Has something happened?

Yes. Something has happened. Something so horrible, he wanted to cover his ears and ignore it. Dead? James and Lily, dead? The two strongest, most stubborn people he had ever met, just gone. Ripped from life by the most vile and repulsive creature ever to walk the earth. He was anything but a human being. He had lost that title long ago.

So that was that. Voldemort truly had ripped his old life away. All in his vain desire to live forever, he had taken away two friends of Hunter's, along with decades of his life. And now Evelyn and Poppy were twice his age. What was there now?

"Hunter..." Evelyn watched and waited to continue until her brother looked up. "You never did answer. What happened to you?"

***

The burrow was silent. No one could really process what Mr. Weasleys had just told them. A person? Alive, in the horrible place, a person had been trapped? A person?

"I'm sorry... did I hear you right? I thought you said they found... a person?" Hermione asked. Arther shook his head solemely.

"No, Hermione, you heard me quite right. They did find a person there."

And in everyone's minds, a question lingered. That poor soul whom had been trapped... What _happened_ to them?

***

It was a very complicated answer, but Hunter did his best. The answer was horrible, and heart wrenching. Hunter... the most beautiful soul Poppy and Evelyn had ever met, had been ripped at every edge. Here he was, still a masterpiece, but sad and lonely and broken. Everyone in this world was just dying to live, or living to die. And Hunter, who had been so silent since they found him, had once been so loud. When they had known him, he was loud and dramatic and smiling, always smiling! And wasn't that ironic? His heart had cracked... loudly, and he screamed, and it was painful. But only to him. To everyone else, all was silent. It was almost amazing really... how to everyone but the victim, the heart makes no noise when it shatters... Now Hunter made no noise either. But silent as all was, it was not invisible. Because hell was something you carried with you, if you go through it. When you carry that with you, it can be seen. The burden on your shoulders... and that's why it sometimes hurts to breath.

Hunter... an innocent boy. And because Voldemory was just that evil, he had done this to Hunter. Sent him somewhere that he was all alone. No, it had not been where he was that had hurt him. It was not having anyone else there. The silence.

_It was so quiet..._

All alone, somewhere few even knew about...

Do you understand now? Where he was? No, probably not... but that is something for someone else to tell. Because Hunter did not know all the answers. What you have been told now, vague as it is, was all Hunter knew. Voldemort, or rather, You-Know-Who, had sent him somewhere, and for a long time, for decades, he had been there alone. Then he was suddenly here, and the world around him had changed.

After Hunter told them all he knew, Evelyn and Poppy, though they hated the idea, knew what needed to be done to get all of the answers. It probably would end horribly, but...

They needed to speak with Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy... oh dear, how this would go...

**Hope you guys enjoyed it!**

**Love you** **all** **! <3**  
**-Kaylee**


	7. The Malfoy's (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Court room with Lucius Malfoy, and he opens his pie hole :(

**Third Person POV**

In the court room were a few people in the crowd. Obviously, Hunter was there. So was Poppy Pomfrey and Evelyn Moonstone, well, Clement again now. Next to her was Jackson Firehearth, who had been informed of everything a few hours ago. One person you might not expect there was Draco Malfoy. While Hunter and Poppy and Evelyn were on benches twenty feet from where the prisoners would be, he was up above in an observing room, separated by glass. He could hear from there, but as he wasn't actually a part of what was taking place, he wasn't down on the main floor. He was only hear because it was his parents being the ones heard. This wasn't a new trial, they were just in a court room so that the judge could ensure Mr And Mrs Malfoy remained... civil. Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy were brought out. The judge eyes them distastefully. For people who had just been brought out of Azkaban, even having only been there a few days, they seemed to be faring well. Unfortunately.

Aside from the prison clothes and deshelved appearances, they didn't have visable insanity developing in their eyes. Of course, this didn't say much as to what was not visable, what they were thinking. The judge asked Hunter to step out for a moment, as they were concerned as to what painful memories this may bring up. With him gone, they were free to jump right into the big stuff. Jackson, being an Auror, stepped up to ask questions. Evelyn was to close to this.

"Lucius Malfoy, can you tell me what happened to Hunter Clement?"

Lucius looked at him lazily. A smug smirk grew on his face. "I'm afraid you'll need to be more specific. Hunter Clement?" You could tell by his tone he knew exactly what and who they were talking about.

"The nineteen year old found in a panic room in your old house."

"House? That was a manner," he scoffed, and wrinkled his nose. "House."

"Just tell us what you know about him. And while your at it, tell us why he hasn't aged." Jackson was quickly tiring of Lucius' mind games.

"For what?" Lucius said. Jackson raised his eyebrows.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me!" Lucius yelled. Even now, he still held a holier-than-thou attitude. He acted as though he didn't come here by gaurd escort, but by desire to be here. "If I am to tell you what you want, why should I do it for free? And don't give me a speech about how I'm in custody of the Ministry, I still have the right to remain silent if I wish. And besides, I've already been tried for my work with the Dark Lord, and you are unable to put someone on trial for a crime they've already been tried for, we both know that. Also, what I want is very simple."

The court was silent for a moment. Narcissa smiled slowly and with pride at how well her husband was handling this.

Jackson cleared his throat, frowning. " _If_ I were to agree to this, what is it you would ask?"

Lucius smiled maliciously, knowing he was getting what he wanted. "I simply desire a conversation with Draco. That is all."

Up in the booth, Draco tensed. Jackson looked up at him through the glass. It was his decision. He sighed, and dread filled him. He gave a simple nod, and Jackson gave a very small sympathetic smile.

The smile disappeared when he looked back at Lucius. "Fine. Just tell us what you know, and you can have a lovely chat with your only child."

Lucius smiled mysteriously, like he knew something no one else did. "Only child..." He muttered under his breath, amused. Then he looked up.

"Ever heard of the multiverse?"

...Whatever anyone had expected, no one had expected that. Lucius continued on.

"It's this theory some idiot came up with, but it holds some truth. Many years ago, the Dark Lord discovered that there was another world bound to this one. We already knew that there were many parallel universes out there, that was discovered long ago. But this one was... different somehow. It was empty, devoid of life. Barren. But it seemed it could be hospitable. It also seemed... that one could live forever there. The war was in his favor at the time, we figured we could try an experiment that would take years. I was barely out of school, following him discreetly. If we were to put a person in there, maybe wait a few years, we could pull him out and see if he had aged. If not, we would figure out a way to send the whole wizard world there, leave the filthy mudbloods behind here, and rule for eternity there. Can you see where this is going?" Lucius paused, wondering if the idiots were fast enough to understand. They all looked horrified and sick.

"You sent Hunter..." Evelyn's voice shook with rage and horror. Poppy had a few tears running down her face.

Lucius smiled, seemingly delighted. "You do get it! Now, see, where was I? Ah, yes, well, after sending that one in there, the Dark Lord was defeated. Poor Hunter was forgotten about, until recently when You-Know-Who rises again, we pulled him out. Then he was defeated for good and me and Narcissa were sent to Azkaban and he was left behind."

After he finished, Evelyn jumped up to attack Lucius, but Jackson cut her off on her way. Narcissa laughed at the attempt.

Poppy slipped unnoticed out of the room to find Hunter...

**To Be Continued...**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK, so I'm back! I was wondering if you guys would appreciate me making a schedule for when I update? Like, I could commit to every Wensday or something. Let me know if it would work for you guys (and girls, of course! :D).  
> Now, the chapter!


	8. The Malfoy's (Pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So Narcissa and Lucius have a talk with Draco. It's a very interesting conversation...

  **Third Person** **POV**

Amongst all the chaos, everyone had temporarily forgotten about the deal made with Lucius Malfoy. When they failed to remember, he was quick to remind them.

"My heir! I was promised a conversation with him!" Everyone stared at him incredulously.

"Excuse me?" Evelyn spat at him in disgust, "you expect us to give you something, after what you've done! What you've just admitted to doing, to my brother!"

Lucius raised an eyebrow. "Well, seeing as it was an agreement made ahead of time for my disclosing of that information, yes, I do expect that conversation. There is important things I must inform him of, as my heir, things he must know."

Before anyone else could speak, the topic of this debate rised from his seat. "I did agree to the conversation. I'll give him an hour and have done with it." Draco spoke gravely, somewhat reluctantly, as though he was about to write his will. Jack looked at him with all sympathy he was capable of.

"We would be smart to give them privacy for this." He said. Evelyn was looking around, unable to believe that this agreement was being followed through. "We aren't actually letting them do this are we?"

Jack didn't answer, grabbing Evelyn's hand and leading her out, though she resisted. Everyone else followed, save for a gaurd by Lucius. Narcissa stayed silent through the endeavour. Draco moved from the room he was in, and made his way to the real court room, so that there was no longer glass between him and his former guardians.

"Hello Draco..." Narcissa said softly, but there was no love in her eyes. It was an acknowledgement, and little more. Before Lucius could get a word in, Draco did. He had to know this. It kept him up at night, and he needed to know.

"Why did you do it?" He asked. Narcissa frowned. "Do what?"

"Lie." Was Draco's only response. "Lie to _him_ , about Potter, for me? We both know you never loved me much, either of you," he glanced at Lucius, then back at Narcissa, "and you certainly never loved me enough to lie to _him_. So why?"

It was not Narcissa who answered, but her husband. "Foolish boy, it's obvious! It's why I even wanted this conversation! Your right, you weren't worth lying to the Dark Lord. The blood in your veins, however, was."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "What makes my blood so much more special then that of any other pureblood?"

Narcissa rolled her eyes. Lucius stared at Draco in horror of his ignorance. "Why, us of course! The Malfoy and Black bloodline continued through you! You are our only legitiment heir! We can't have you dying."

"Why do you keep doing that?" Draco snapped.

"Doing what?" Lucius asked, confused.

"You never say only _son,_ you never say your only _child_. Your only _heir_. Why do you do that?" Draco couldn't help but ask. Narcissa and Lucius shared a look.

"Well..." Narcissa began, "once we had another child. Long ago, before the Potter incident. But somehow they ended up a filthy squib!" She exclaimed, sounding as though the child had been that way on purpose. "Anyway, the Dark Lord said that the child's lack of magic offended him. So he made us get rid of the child, though after the discovery, we very well may have done that anyway." She said this, all of it, like it didn't matter. She and Lucius were more absent then before. Perhaps Azkaban had taken a small toll.

Draco stumbled back. "W-what? What did you do?"

"Oh, we gave them to the Dark Lord to get rid of, of course."

Draco's eyes widened. "What? What did he-"

"Oh, enough about this. We sent them to some random place in the muggle world, where their lack of magic wouldn't matter. I believe they was five at the time. And yes, they are most likely dead. But that's not what we're here for!"

"Then what are we here for?" Draco asked. "What, if not this? Why are we speaking?"

"We are here to discuss some things you need to remember to keep up the Malfoy image." Narcissa smiled with exitment, like this was good news.

Draco took a step back. "Excuse me?"

"You heard right. Now, first- where are you going?" Lucius asked when Draco started walking to the door.

"I'm done here."

"Get back here!" Narcissa yelled.

Draco turned around, a fire in his eyes. "You two are sick and twisted. You deserve each other. But I never asked to be your son, and for the love of all that is good and pure, I never deserved either of you!"

With those words, he left the room, leaving the people who were once his parents. He left the Malfoy name there with them too.

 **So** **I** **know Hunter never** **made** **an appearance in this** **chapter** **, but it was** **supposed** **to** **be centered** **around** **Draco. I was trying to establish the kind** **of** **person he is in this** **fic** **.**

 **So** **Draco's** **sibling** **_will_ come into play later, so remember everything they talked about here** **.**

 **That's** **all for now guys! See you soon <** **3**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone. I'm so sorry this took me so long! I promise I'll try to be better!


	9. Only Child (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We meet Draco's sibling, and find out a bit more about what happened when Voldemort 'got rid of' them.

**Third Person POV**

_****Malfoy Manner, December 19th,** _ _**197**_ ** _5_** _ ****** _

 

Astra Malfoy did not wake up in her bed that night, though she had fallen asleep there. She was woken up harshly after being dropped carelessly on the forest floor. She gasped awake, giving a cry of pain. The fact that she was not only not in bed, but not in her room, was the first thing she noticed. Her 'bedroom' was in the basement, and it was cold and damp down there, not that her parents cared enough to do anything. So she slept with a cloak on under her blanket to keep warm, a fact for which she was grateful now.

For a five year old, Astra was extremely intelligent. She was observant, and she wasn't as disruptive. Though that last part was more because of her parents. Since she was a toddler, she had been punished for being disruptive. She had blue-grey eyes that were similar, though not identical to her father's. Her hair was fair and blonde, though even as young as she was, it had grown into a slightly darker blonde. Her eyes were wide and bold, and her heart shaped face resembled that of the fea folk, though this was not a good thing in her parents eyes.

It wasn't hard to figure out she was in the woods outside the Manner, that was evident from what the ground felt like when she had been dropped. It was dark here. She hated the dark, not knowing what was there... She wanted to call for her parents, but she bit her tongue. They got mad when she called for them, said she should be able to deal with things herself.

"Astra?" She heard her mother's voice. Any other child would have found that comforting in this situation, but something in her tone made Astra more afraid.

"Lomos," she heard her father say. From his wand, the forest was lit up as light overpowered the darkness. She saw her parents there in black robes, their faces cold and neutral. She looked around, and saw on her other side was the bad man, who her parents referred to as 'the Dark Lord', standing there in front of fifty other people in black robes. She didn't like the bad man. He was always mean, and her parents were always mean too when he was there.

"Astra," her mother said, her voice uncaring. Astra turned to face her. "I want you to know that this is unfortunate for your father and I as well. We are losing our heir, after all. But you must **never** try to return to us. The Dark Lord does not wish you here, and therefore you must be gotten rid of." Her mother's cold face made Astra scared. She didn't understand most of what her mother just said, but she didn't like it. She looked at her father, but he looked just as cold as Narcissa.

"Goodbye, Astra. It has been a very educational experience for your mother and I, and we now know what to expect for our new heir, when we get one. However, assuming that the Dark Lord is right, and I can't see how he could ever be wrong, then we made a mistake creating you at all. Lucky for you, you are biologically our descendent, so inspite if your disgrace, we are allowing you to live. I expect you to be grateful for our leniency if you grow up." With those words, Lucius Malfoy took his wife's hand, and they stood aside, leaving Astra in an open space with Voldemort and fifty death eaters. Voldemort grinned wickedly.

 

 

"Farewell, Astra Malfoy. Or rather, filthy _squib_ _!_ " He spat the last bit, hatred burning in his eyes. Then he raised his wand, and the fifty death eaters followed his example. Thin white strings of magic shot out, melting together in front of Astra to create a portal. She was sucked through, and it closed behind her.

***

Astra let out a yelp as she fell onto the cold hard ground for the second time that night, the air quickly getting knocked out of her. She gasped air back into her lungs, eyes wide and frantic as she looked around. She was scared.

She was still in woods, though clearly not the same ones she had been in moments ago. It was greener here, with trees covered in moss. And it was wet, like it had just rained. Through the gaps in the clouds above, it could be seen that the moon was in the middle of the sky. It was the dead of night here, whereas back home, it had been dawn.

" _Mother_ _!_ " She screamed. She didn't care if she got in trouble anymore. " ** _Father!_** " More desperate now. She just wanted to go _home_.

 _Home_. She thought, remembering what her parents had said. She hasn't understood most of it, but... had they been saying goodbye? _Home_... a cold chill of pure fear ran through her. Did she even have one anymore?

_Snap!_

Astra gasped, whirling around, and coming face to face with a unfamiliar man with a threatening scowl on his face. From head to toe, he wore only leather, his feet clad in combat boots. His black shirt, under the leather vest, was a T-shirt, showing off his muscular arms, biker gloves covering his hands. He was bald and built like a professional boxer. He may have not gotten outside much, as he was slightly pale, with tattoes of runes scattered over his body in every place where skin was visable. He had a weapons belt, and in his hand, he held an elegant one-sided blade, a sword, with glowing blue runes on it.

Astra saw all this in seconds, and immediately all her instincts screamed, _run._

She turned and bolted, but he was fast on her heels, and in seconds, he grabbed her by the hair, and she cried out in pain.

"How'd you get away, huh?" He spoke in a gruff voice, and brought the hilt of the blade down on her head, knocking her or cold.

***

 _Ow_.

Astra grunted as she slowly blinked her eyes open. As soon as she tried to move, she gasped. She glanced to the side, and was just as terrified as she had been when she was knocked out. She was on her knees with her hands handcuffed behind her back, in a line with nine other kids. She was on the end, the nine others lined up on her left. Looking ahead, she saw next to the man who had knocked her out, a tall slim man with similar dress, and fair hair. In one hand, he held a beautiful chalice with what looked like gold on it. For a moment, she looked on in fascination. Then the man took a blade, and sliced his arm, letting his blood poor into it, and she gasped in horror, looking away and shutting her eyes tight. The man looked at her. He rolled his eyes.

"If this works," he said, striding up to her, "you'll need to get used to blood." He was right in front of her now. She looked up at him, eyes wide with fear. He grabbed her face, forcing her mouth open. She tried to pull away, but then the chalice was at her lips, and the blood was forcefully poured down her throat as she gasped, choking it down...

 **There will be a second part to this chapter, but it was getting a bit lengthy. What do** **_you_ ** **think will happen to Astra? Or maybe Draco's sister is dead? Sorry. I** **can't** **tell you.** **You'll** **find put eventually though!**

 **Bye** **guys! <** **3**

**-Kaylee**


	10. Only Child (Pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Astra is alive, and she gets away.

**Third Person POV**

Astra gasped, only to choke on the thick red liquid being forced into her mouth and down her throat. She was desperately trying not to think of it as _blood_. Because she could not be drinking _blood!_

Then the chalice was away from her face, and the blood she hadn't swallowed spurted from her mouth, squirting in front of her and falling to the ground. Astra hunched over, painfully and uncontrollably with her hands bound behind her back. She coughed and heaved and wretched, trying to just _breath_ , but it was worse than that. The pain was more then just the lack of air in her hoarse throat... it was like the blood had joined her own in her veins, and it had activated something in her, setting her veins on fire as a white-hot power began vibrantly coursing through them. Astra let out a scream of pure agony as the fair haired man went behind her setting his sword down on the ground to her right before he crouched behind Astra. As the pain and her scream ceased, her energy depleted. She slumped, and felt him grab her hands, and craned her neck to watch with bloodshot eyes as he took something from his weapons belt. The object seemed to be metal, a smooth deep silver-gray, with what looked like a glowing white opaque crystal on the end. Astra faced forward again, her neck no longer able to take the strain. She winced as she felt a burning sensation on her hand, but she did not scream this time. Compared to what she had just felt, it was barely a tickle. The man finished whatever he was doing, and the burning sensation faded. When he walked in front of her, about to move on to the next kid, he halted, and rage overtook his face.

"You fool!" He exclaimed. The bald man had done to four other kids hands what was done to hers, and looked at the fair haired man in confusion. "They need to drink from the Cup first!"

The four kids began to scream as they grew upward, their clothes tearing from the strain, until they were grotesque giants with ugly scars, angry and red on their hands. The hit the remaining five, killing them on impact, but before they could turn on Astra, the tattoo'd men grabbed swords from their weapons belts and closed in on the giants, Astra now forgotten.

Looking back now, Astra has no idea how she had been able to think so fast when she was so afraid. She had no idea how her five-year-old self had been so brave, especially with all she had been through that night. She just remembered how fast she had run.

Astra remembered the sword next to her, and shifted so her back was to it. With visible effort, and getting cuts on her her hands in the process, she used it to break the bonds on her back. It was a struggle, and she was almost frantic now, until... _clang!_ Her hands were free. She gasped, and looked at her captors. There were only two giants left now, but they were still busy with those two that remained. She scrambled to her feet, grabbed the sword, and ran like hell. She ran faster then she had ever run before, pushing her legs with more strength then she ever remembered having before. She ran as hard as she could, never even stopping to look back.

"Ah!" She ran into something and fell backwards on her butt. Astra looked up with panic, expecting one of the bad men she had just ran from, but instead saw a complete stranger. It was a guy, maybe twenty or so years, about 5'7'', with dull green eyes and brown-black hair. He was lean, and did have muscles, but she wouldn't describe him as muscular. His most defining feature, though, was pale. He looked as though he had not seen sunlight in decades, and was wearing plain jeans with a black T-shirt and a black zip-up sweater. He was also staring at her in shock, like he couldn't believe anyone was here at night.

"What are you-" His eyes went wide, and suddenly in a blur of movement, he was leaning down in front of her, his hands on her shoulders, and he sniffed the air around her. A low hiss came from between his teeth, and he looked behind her. His eyes narrowed and sniffed the air again, eyeing her with shock. "Angel blood..." he said in a low growl, but he said it without looking at her, like he was talking to himself. He stared at her again. At last Astra's brain caught up with her, but just before she could run, she saw a blur of movement, and suddenly she was off the ground with wind hitting her face. It took Astra a minute to realise she wasn't falling.

The guy she had run into, he was holding her small body bridal style against is cold chest. He gave off no body heat, none at all even as he ran, running faster then any normal human being had any right to. The woods were moving past in a blur, and before she could blink, they were running through the city. Even as fast as they were running, she realized they were blurring through London! Even with the portal, she had never left the country. Astra didn't know how she felt about that, because she didn't have time to process it before they stopped, coming to a halt in front of an abandoned run-down cathedral. The stranger put her down, and had to put a hand on her shoulder to stable her as she almost fell over, dizzy and confused. Getting her sense back, she thought about running, but his hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"I won't hurt you..." he murmured. She stopped looking around for a way out and looked at him. She realized that He had probably just saved her life from the people who hurt her. He let go of her shoulder, and held something out to her. The sword she had stolen. She stared at the blade for barely a second before reaching for the handle. For some reason, the blade seemed to call to her. As soon as she wrapped her fingers around the hilt, the runes on it lit up a brilliant blue. Astra gasped, almost dropping the blade, but she tightened her grip, refusing to let go. She watched in fascination as the blue glow faded down the blade. The man regarded her with interest.

Maybe it was the euphoria that she had survived everything that had happened that night. Maybe her fight or flight instinct had finally shut down, and her mind had remembered that she was only five, and so like the child she was, she now found everything fun or cool. But after seeing the glow fade from the runes of the blade, she grinned up at the man and laughed, eyes wide with wonder. "Can I do that again!?"

He laughed, unable to resist Astra's sudden giddiness. "I'm afraid I'm probably not the best person to ask about that." He replied. He banged on the door to the cathedral, and a few moments later the doors opened. A blonde woman with her hair in a tight bun and appeared to be in her late twenties stepped out. She wore all black, and like the bad men, was covered in her tattoos, but had no weapons belt. She didn't seen pleased to see the man, but gave a tight smile.

"Ricardo," she said, not having noticed Astra, "What can I help you with?"

"Valentine." The guy, whose name she now knew was Ricardo said. With that one word the women's whole demeanor changed. "Wha-here?"

Ricardo explained everything that had happened since he had found her, using words Astra had never heard before, like 'Mortal Cup', or 'seraph blade', and 'shadowhunter'. The woman looked at Astra with a sad and sympathetic smile. "You should probably come inside sweetheart." She said. Astra looked at Ricardo. "Why isn't he coming?"

The woman paused, but before she could speak, Ricardo grinned at her. He had two razor sharp teeth on the top row corners of his mouth, Astra noticed. Like fangs. "Don't worry," he said, "I'll see you again someday. In fact, if this goes well, you'll probably save my life someday." With those words, he turned around, and ran so fast he disappeared in a blur. Astra went inside the building with the woman, not idea the life she would now live.

A life of fighting and battles, angels and demons, and more love than her old life could have ever offered her...

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I know I haven't been updating very regularly. I'm going to a youth conference this weekend and won't have internet, so I can't update for a few more days. I promise though I will get better :)


	11. Tearing the Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunter overheard what happened in the court room. Poppy had to go find him and help him out.

**Third Person POV**

Poppy found Hunter a little ways away from the court room, hidden in an L-cove. He barely looked at her. He was sitting on the ground, his head in his hands, shaking. For a moment, nothing moved. She just stood there, gazing at him. She hated all this, hated having to look at him as he was now, and knowing that he would never be the same. Even if he got better, he wouldn't be the same. It was not only because his heart had broken, hearts were - by nature - breakable. But when your heart breaks and you heal, you are still never the same as before. Sometimes that can be good... Sometimes you can evolve from that and grow stronger.

This was not one of those times.

Because sometimes suffering is just suffering. It doesn't make you stronger, or build character. Sometimes it just _hurts_.

She sighed, and sat down next to him. He barely looked up. She didn't want to hurt him more, but she needed to ask. "Did you know?" She asked softly, a little louder then a whisper. "Everything we heard in there, did you know?"

Hunter shook his head. Then he lifted it from his hands and looked at her. His eyes were bloodshot, but there were no tear stains on his face. He probably wiped them away...

"After they asked me to leave... I stayed by the door. I kept listening, for a bit. I heard it all. After I did, I came here. Didn't know where I was headed, I just wanted somewhere private."

She looked down, wishing to erase the last hour from her head. She could only imagine how Hunter felt right now.

"I'm so sorry, Hunter. I wish this had never happened to you." She was almost crying, but not quite there. He smiled sadly.

"I know I should probably be asking myself something like, why me, what did I do to deserve this, but I'm not. Because there are no answers to either of them, not really. Why not me? In all honesty, it was probably a random choice and I just pulled the short straw. I don't think there was any higher power at play in this, just bad luck." He had a dazed expression on his face, like he was just thinking out loud, but she knew he was talking to her. "You know, they say that time heals all wounds... but in this case, I think the cause of suffering is as timeless as the dimension I was in."

"Don't say that!" Poppy demanded, looking up at him. "You will heal! Eventually, you'll find a normal again. You'll be different, yes, but you are gonna be you again, I promise!"

Hunter shook his head, still sadly smiling. He looked her in the eye. "How can you know?"

Poppy paused for a moment, considering her answer. How did she know? She knew she honestly believed the words leaving her mouth, but how?

"Well..." Poppy sighed. She decided to take a unique approach to answering this.

"Did you know children never grow up?" She asked. Hunter raised his eyebrows at that. "Huh?"

"Children never grow up." She stated. Hunter frowned. Where was she going with this? "Children's bodies grow bigger, but their mind stays the same at first. Then all the crap in the world starts to tear at their hearts and they adapt to the cruelty and we call it growing up. But there are some people who adapt, but keep that light they had from their childhood. I grew up with you, and I saw you hang on to that light," Poppy smiled, remembering the days they had laughed together. Hunter was looking at her intently. "And now Voldemort went out of his way to tear up your heart, but I know you. I know who you are and I honestly believe that nothing can dim the light in you. I don't even think you know it yourself, but you are the person I knew. A little torn up and bruised... but still Hunter." Poppy smiled softly, and Hunter smiled back. They stayed sitting like that for a few minutes, then Hunter took a deep breath, breaking reality into the moment. He kept smiling though.

"As far as motivational speeches go, that was pretty decent for improve." He told her, smiling. She had to laugh at that one. Hunter looked at her. Then he frowned and looked away.

"I keep thinking... I love you all. And coming back here has been so hard on all of you because of what happened. Was it worth it? Loving each other? You and Evelyn... all the pain could have been avoided without love..."

Poppy frowned. "What are you saying? Of course it was worth it!"

He shook his head. "I've realised now that there is so much risk in loving someone..."

Poppy scoffed. "There is so much more risk in not. Yeah, it hurt like hell. But you never say that again. All this war Voldemort brought, it's because he doesn't understand how to love. You can't think like that. Because WITH love, you never would have gone missing."

Hunter sighed. "I know, it's just... you know your older now?" Poppy frowned. "Huh?"

"You are. And so is everyone else. My life is gone. I don't know how to get it back."

Poppy looked at Hunter. She loved him. So much, so many days, she would dream of him coming back. Of him being alive and well. Finally she got everything she wanted... but in a way she hated.

"We'll figure it out. _Together_. I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter :)
> 
> Bye my darlings! <3


	12. Astra

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco tells Jackson what the Malfoy's told him, and then we see Astra again, modern day this time, and she's not in the best shape.

  **Third Person POV**

"Sister or brother?" Jackson asked Draco, his eyebrows raised incredulously.

In retrospect, it was rather difficult to believe. Draco Malfoy had a sister? The Malfoy's had another kid? More than that, one that they had literally _thrown away?_ Who does that? They were to lazy to even drop the kid off at a orphanage!

Draco just frowned and shook his head. "They didn't really say. To be honest, I was so creeped out I sort of got out of there as fast as possible, but I might have an idea." Draco winced a bit as he spoke, evidently still creeped out. Jackson decided to find out a bit more about the events themselves, and circle back to the 'sister or brother' thing later. Evelyn came up to them, asking if either of them had seen Hunter. Apparently, he hadn't been waiting for her when she left the court room. When they both shrugged she sighed, muttering a 'dammit' under her breath as she walked away. Jackson turned back to Draco.

"Do you know why they did it? Did they say anything about why?" Draco shook his head, but he was still frowning. Jackson took the hint.

"OK, so what do you know that they didn't tell you?"

"Well..." Draco shook his head. "I didn't think about it until after I left the room, but a lot of times when I was really young, before my accidental magic started up, they would whisper about how I 'better not be like her.' They would talk about this girl, how no one could ever know what happened to her..." Draco's voice got shaky towards the end as the reality of what his parents had done fully sunk into him. His eyes lowered to the floor, pain and regret in them, even though none of what had happened was his fault. He gasped in a jerky breath.

"Draco," Jackson's voice was softer now, sympathetic. "Did you ever hear a name? Or anything that could tell us about the reason?"

Draco nodded tiredly. "Her name was Astra. Apparently, she was a squib..." He squeezed his eyes shut. "I have a sister. And her name is Astra."

***

When people looked at Astra, they never asked if her hair was dyed black. They never thought it was. They complimented the purple streaks in her hair, saying they suited her, but because she had gotten her eyebrows dyed black with her hair, no one knew that it was originally blonde.

Astar took a lot of crap for how muscular she was. Yeah, everyone loved the look of a fit girl, but apparently, Astra was _too_ fit for a girl. Apparently, she was supposed to be soft and delicate, but due to what she did for a living, she preferred to remain in shape, with biceps and abs and all. Though admittedly, it didn't hurt in some if her missions to look disireable, but in that case, Astra would just wear a long sleeve jacket, and it would do the trick. If not, her and Jay would probably just ask Jane to help them out.

Unlike the rest of her, Astra's face was soft and delicate, it was heart shaped and endearing. Maybe it was a strange combination, but she knew how to make it work when she had to. She knew how to apply make-up just right for that neccesity, and it started with the eyeliner to make her blue-grey eyes piercing. She was fairly average height, 5'6, and though the mission had not called for it, she had felt like wearing make-up today. She had on a tight flattering red tank top with a sweetheart neckline that had a ruffled-type style, dark grey skinny jeans with knee-high leather boots, and a leather jacket that ended parrallele to the bottom of her ribcage with silver zippers and pockets over her breasts, the jacket left unzipped. Her weapons belt was strapped to her hip, with a sereph blade on either side and her steel in it. Of course, she had small knifes hidden everywhere, as well as a back-up stele. Always prepared for anything.

It was a simple mission, really. That was why she had decided to go by herself. That was also why she was so shocked as she felt a sword run through her.

Astra had managed to do her job anyway, killing her enemy despite the deep wound. But only when in the aftermath did she realise the alley she was in was right by Kings Cross station.

That was when she did something she never wanted to do. Dying, and unable to get help any closer, she took her best chance at surviving, unable to think of the consequences in her blood-loss...

***

It had been quite some time since the discovery of Draco Malfoy's long lost sister, and the ministry could no longer search for her. She had disappeared to completely, and far too long ago. The school year at Hogwarts had begun again, several people retaking last year. Amount them was Hermione Granger, Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, and Draco Malfoy. People who had been here had the option to retake the last year anyways, due to the warped criteria last year had abided by for classes.

Hunter had not been moved to St. Mungos, but remained in Poppy's care because of their history together. As a matter of fact, Poppy was in the hospital ward with him right now. They were having a relatively normal conversation when the doors suddenly burst open. _Oh for heavens sake!_ Poppy thought, thinking it was some students trying to be disruptive. She turned around, ready to scold them, "you cannot just- o _h!_ " She gasped, eyes widening with shock and horror at the site before her.

_"What happened?"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh dear... what did Poppy see?


	13. Muggle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jackson and Evelyn find Astra at Kigs cross, and bring her to Hogwarts.

**Third Person POV**

Evelyn and Jackson's day had started out normal enough. The two had been at work, filling out some files of paper work in their shared office, before someone pounded really hard on the door. They both looked up, glancing at the door, then locking eyes with each other in surprise. No one ever bothered them at this time, not nowadays. In the aftermath of everything that had happened, there was a period of temporary peace, even now, a couple months later. Not much had happened lately, so aside from checking in with families who had suffered losses, missions and disturbances were few and far in between, and they were never asked to do them personally, instead getting a message from an owl or a patronus.

So why was someone knocking?

Apparently not willing to wait for an answer, the person just came on in. It was Mr. Harold, their supervisor. He never talked to them in person much - he never needed to, they always did their job so well he never needed to have a conversation with them. He would just send them owls, with letters telling them what they needed to do, and if they took on a case he hadn't assigned them, he would let them, knowing they were capable. He only ever came in if there was a spontaneous mission they needed to do, which wasn't often.

As it turned out though, that was what was happening now. Apparently there had been a muggle breach at platform 9 & 3/4, and they were required to go and deal with it. They had no idea how unprepared they were for what they would find...

***

Evelyn and Jackson were now at platform 9 & 3/4, searching for whoever the muggle that had accidently gone through was.

"He definitely didn't leave," Evelyn said. "We'd know if he had..." she was calling out slightly as she spoke, as her and Jackson had split up.

"Evelyn!" She heard Jackson scream her name in a frantic voice, and she ran towards the sound. That was when she saw him, holding a girl in his arms. Gasping at the sight as her hands flew to her mouth and her eyes widened in horror, she had one overwhelming thought. _Red..._ The girl was maybe in her twenties, and her long black hair, which had purple streaks, was pulled into a tight high ponytail as it hung over her shoulder. She was wearing black leather combat boots, dark grey skinny jeans, and a black unzipped fitting leather jacket that ended where the bottom of her rib cage would. As for her shirt? Well, Evelyn couldn't see it clearly enough to describe it. There was too much blood for her to see, staining the shirt a vibrant red as it spurted out of a wound in her stomach. It had pooled around her. It was all over Jackson now, and Evelyn swallowed her nauseousness as she realized she had stepped in it.

Shaking her head and breathing in, Evelyn forced herself to think. _Do not freeze on this girl, dammit!_

"We need to buy some time - stop the bleeding!" She said to Jackson, leaning down and putting pressure on the wound.

"Burn the wound shut, then we don't need to worry about the blood loss." Jackson told her, lifting up the blood soaked material that was once her shirt. Evelyn could barely see what she was doing, but taking a shot in the dark, she aimed her wand at where she thought the blood was coming from. She said a spell to summon fire, and tried not to wince as it burned the girls skin. It's to help her, she thought to herself, but only felt better when the girls face gave no sign of pain. That meant that she wasn't feeling it. The bleeding stopped, and Evelyn felt relief that she had burned the right spot.

"We need to get help before the wound gets infected," she told Jackson, who nodded.

"Well, we can't apparate, that's to risky for her condition, especially since she's a muggle. If I summon the train, we can get her to Hogwarts, then Poppy can look after her until she's stable enough to goto St. Mungo's." After hearing Jackson's plan, Evelyn nodded, knowing it was the best plan they could get for now. Evelyn took the girl from Jackson's arms and into her own, and Jackson summoned the train.

Evelyn stared down at the girl for a moment. They knew she was a muggle. But knowing that, Evelyn couldn't help but wonder how she had gotten the wound. Not from Death Eaters, surely. Not anymore...

Even then, there was a much bigger question. After she had gotten hurt, how had she known to go through platform 9 & 3/4?

***

Jay paced nervously around the room. "She should be back by now..."

Jane looked up. "I'm sure she's fine," she told him. "Besides, you would be able to feel if she wasn't, right?" Jay shook his head and looked at her. "That's why I'm worried. Something feels wrong." Jane frowned at that.

"Well... even if something happened, she's smart. As soon as she can, she'll call you and tell you what happened. She'll be fine, I promise," Jane told him. Then she looked up for a moment, concern on her face. "Who's watching the kid?" She asked. Jay looked up at her. "Don't worry, she's with my aunt."

For a moment, they fell into comfortable silence. Jay was still a little on edge though. How could he not be? Adopted or not, the person missing was his sister. More than that, his parabatai! He sighed, closing his eyes.

 _Astra..._ he thought, _where are you?_


	14. Patient and Nurse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy fixes up Astra, not knowing who she is.

**Third Person POV**

Poppy flung the blankets off of one of the hospital wings beds so that the injured girl could be set down there by Jackson, who was carrying her. As she ran around the girl to figure out how she had been injured and what was needed to help her, Evelyn explained in a rushed voice.

"We found her at platform 9 & 3/4! She was bleeding out, so we had to cauterise the wound to buy time, but we didn't have anything to clean it with, and since she wasn't in any state to apparate, we summoned the train to bring her to you! She lost so much blood though, maybe even over half of what was in her body..." towards the end, Evelyn just trailed off and stared at the girl with a pale face. It was clear she was trying to imagine what the girl must feel like physically. She had explained everything as fast as she possibly could, and in only two breaths.

Poppy waved her wand to give herself a status on the girls condition, and Evelyn was right. She had lost over sixty-percent of her blood. Poppy's eyes widened, and she couldn't help but ask aloud, "how is she not dead yet?"

Jackson and Evelyn looked as each other. Jackson's clothes were drenched with the girls blood, and from the knees down, Evelyn were stained as well. Poppy lifted up the tattered remains of the girls shirt, and used a healing spell over the wound. She was slightly worried that the girl's body would reject the magic being used to heal her, but instead her body welcomed it, allowing the magic to clean the wound, and when Poppy waved her wand again, allowing it to heal the wound. Because of how talented Poppy was, and because of the ease with which the girl's body reacted to magic, it took little for the wound to disappear and smooth over, the girls skin giving no indication it had been wounded at all.

"Why isn't there a scar?" Evelyn asked, not as panicked now that the immediately troubling damage had been taken care of. Poppy frowned. It was rather curious, but on occasion she had seen it before.

"Most likely because I got to her so quickly. Healing with magic can do that occasionally of it is done quickly enough. But it doesn't happen often, and only on certain people. Certainly I've never seen it happen to a muggle before..." Poppy shook her head, she had to worry about the blood loss right now! First though, she wanted to clean this girl up. She lifted her wand.

"Scourgify!" It didn't clean her clothes, but it got rid of the still wet blood on her body. Poppy was slightly taken aback to realise how the girl had held on so long through the stress on her body. She took care of herself very obviously. She was strong, with abs and other visible muscles. Poppy realised she was still alive because she was so healthy, and able to endure more then a typical human being. Poppy smiled to herself. "Good girl..." she murmered to herself, proud of her patient whose name she didn't even know.

Then she ran across the room to get the blood replenishing potion, and going back to her patient, and tipped her head up, and gently poured some into the girls pale mouth. And she was pale. With so little blood, the girl had no flush in her skin, and was so very white. That's how Poppy was very aware of how quickly the potion worked. She regained some colour almost immediately, and Poppy heard her taking a deep breath, even breathing better now. She was alright.

Poppy took a deep breath herself, relieved that her patient would be okay. After placing the potion bottle on the night stand by the girls bed, Poppy, without thinking, went over to Hunter's bed and sat down by him. He put his hand on her back. "You good?" he asked her. She hummed a confirmation and took a shaky breath.

"Oh," She got up and walked over to the shelf, grabbing a hydration and nourishment potion. After pouring it in the girls lip, she was satisfied to see her looking a little more content in her sleep. A weight was lifted from Poppy's chest knowing her patient was safe and happy. When she turned back to the room, she saw Jackson staring at her as Evelyn tried to catch his attention by waving her hand in front of his face. Why was he doing that?

"What?" She asked him. For a moment, he didn't answer, and she snapped, "What is it. what?" Jackson stirred, and then he laughed. Evelyn and Poppy shared a look, both frowning. Hunter seemed unsettled as well. "Jackson?" he asked. "You all right man?"

"Jax," Evelyn said, using a nickname she only used when concerned for her best friend. "What's wrong?" But he was still looking at Poppy.

"I'll make sure to go to you if I ever get injured. You were scary just now, pushing everyone out of your way to help her."

"What? I never pushed any of you!" Poppy replied, still looking at him with a deep frown at his current behaviour. Jackson and raised his eyebrows. "Yes you did. We kept trying to help, and you kept shoving us away."

Poppy blinked. She didn't even remember doing that... "okay well... still, how is it funny?"

Jackson laughed again. Both Evelyn and Hunter. "I don't know. I think I'm going into shock." Looking down at all the blood on his clothes, he fainted, laughing right up until he lost consciousness.

"Jax!" Evelyn screamed, immediately falling to her knees on the floor next to him. Poppy was quickly back into gear, running around the hospital wing to help him.


	15. Panic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco comes into the Hospital Wing while Astra is still unconcious, and he's there when she wakes up.

**Third Person POV**

"I still can't believe you fainted." Evelyn said. "You are an auror, Jackson. You are an auror, and have recently lived through a terrible war, and you passed out," her tone was disappointed and exasperated, but also amused. "I mean, honestly dude. You passed out!"

After Jackson had fainted, they decided to move him to a bed, and Poppy had gotten an ice pack for him. When he had woken up a few minutes ago, she stopped holding it to his head and let him do that himself.

Since then, he and Evelyn had been arguing back and forth. Right now, he was responding to her.

"Yeah well, I couldn't take it anymore! There was so much blood and it was - actually it still is - all over me! I HAVE BLOOD ON MY ROBES!"

"Your an _auro_ _r_ Jackson! YOU ALWAYS HAVE BLOOD ON YOUR ROBES!"

"NOT THIS MUCH!"

"WILL YOU STOP YELLING?"

" _YOU_ ARE YELLING!"

" **SHUT UP!** " Poppy's voice cut through Evelyn and Jackson's. Silence overtook the room, as everyone stared at the nurse in shock. Evelyn and Jackson looked down in shame, and Poppy's face was red with anger, and her breathing was heavy.

"You two yelling in my hospital wing IS NOT OK! ONLY I HAVE THE RIGHT, SO SHUT UP!" Poppy was so very done with their arguing, and had been ready to scream at them for a while. Evelyn and Jackson looked down in shame. Poppy closed her eyes and took a deep breath, waiting a moment to calm down. After she felt like she was no longer at risk for yelling them again, she opened her eyes.

"Yes. He fainted. And to the contrary of what you just said Evelyn, it actually makes a lot of sense due to the war recently. As aurors, you have both had to deal with a lot recently, and have both been under a lot of stress. I believe Jackson felt panic, and it was to much today. As I said, it makes quite a bit of sense. He fainted, it happened, moving on. Now, Hunter and I have begun to eat meals in the teachers lounge so that he isn't in bed all the time. Dinner is in about ten minutes, and you can join us as we head down there. Jackson frowned.

"Why in ten minutes?"

As if on cue, the door opened, and two students came in supporting their limping friend between them. He looked really beat up, and it was clear Poppy would want to keep him overnight. Hunter, Evelyn, and Jackson all looked at Poppy incredulously. Evelyn opened her mouth, "how did you-"

"Quidditch practice." Poppy cut her off. Everyone nodded, now understanding how Poppy had known someone would show up. 

Poppy went over to the students, talking softly with them before she led the hurt one over to a bed, giving him a potion that would both take away the pain and sedate him. Dismissing his classmates, she laid out meals and glasses of water on the trays of both her patients in case either of them woke up. She did this knowing she would not return until morning, as Hunter has also been sleeping in her guest room in her part of the castle. All teachers had a sort of apartment type wing in the castle, with a common room, a kitchen, and two bedrooms and fully equipped bathrooms, so they could host guests if necessary. Soon, they were all on there way out the door, Poppy being the last out of the door. She gazed in for a moment, her eyes soft as they drunk in her patients. More specifically, the poor girl who had almost bled out. The girl she had saved from death. She was on a new bed, as her old one still had blood on it, and both her patients had been tucked in and were under the covers. Now, the poor girl who had been so hurt, lay peacefully in her sleep. Poppy's gaze drifted softly to the floor. "...sweet dreams," she murmured.

Then, closing the doors and locking up with a spell, she and Hunter headed off, accompanied by Evelyn and Jackson. All of them were none the wiser to the connection between the two they left behind...

_****Later That Night!**** _

Astra gasped, eyes snapping open as she sat up bolt right. She continued to gasp breaths in until her throat felt dry the breaths she was taking, but she did not stop. Then she forced herself to stop. She was panicking, and she had to stop. _What was happening?_ She kept frantically patting her stomach, wondering where the stab wound was. She couldn't think. She had never expected to be stabbed, it was a routine mission, and she was unable to think. Her only thoughts were wondering where the wound was!

Then, from a nearby window Astra hadn't known was there, moonlight shone in and brushed her face. Astra froze. For a moment - just a moment - she simply froze. Time stopped, too, as her hands hovered over her stomach. At last, she managed to register that there was no wound there, nor a scar.

She was fine.

Astra took in a long shaky breath full of emotion and relief, and she could practically _feel_ the endorphins released in her brain as her mind caught up to her. She closed her eyes, trying to relax. She would never be able to think if she was still panicking. After she calmed down enough to think, she noticed some food and a glass of water in front of her. She was quick to grab for the water, gulping down almost half, and returning the glass to the table. She was surprised to note she was barely dehydrated at all. She couldn't say she was all that hungry either. Neither of these facts aligned with how much blood she had lost. She remembered that she didn't have a scar. After the whole thing with Amelia, magic healed her even better than an iratze. So much so that, depending on the wound, and if she was cared for quickly, magical healing could heal her scars. Maybe she was with some warlocks? _Oh!_

Icy fear filled Astra as it all came back to her. She remember glamoring herself and crawling, wounded and fast losing blood, through King's Cross. She went through Platform 9 & 3/4, and passing out in her own blood. Hogwarts. She was at Hogwarts, surrounded by witches and wizards. Her heart stuttered-

"Are you ok?"

She gasped, choking in a scream and cursing herself. She was a shadowhunter, she should be completely aware of her surroundings! She looked up into the grey eyes of a blonde haired boy. His hair was light and fair, somehow tugging at a faint memory in the back of her mind.

"Who are you?" She asked, untrusting of those she didn't know. He raised his eyebrows, ckearly not used to the question.

"I'm Draco Malfoy. Are you ok?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed that guys  
> Bye! :-)


	16. A Family Matter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We meet Astra's new family.

**Third Person POV**

Astra stared for a moment, but forced out a reply of 'I'm fine', not wanting to be suspicious. Normally, Astra would have cursed herself for stuttering like she had when she spoke, but she was so overwhelmed she could barely think. First she had been stabbed, then forced to choose between going to the worst place she could imagine and death, then she had woken up confused and unsure. As if that wasn't enough! Now, she met someone named 'Malfoy'?

Now Astra saw it, though. She could see the resemblance between this person and the people who had thrown her away. This guy had the same hair as they had, the same eyes and chin as _he_ had. Now Astra realised he was around eighteen. Now it clicked. So very completely, everything came together. Those people, those horrible vile people, they had gotten another child. This was their new heir, he had taken her place as the heir because she had not been good enough for them. She was born without magic, but since this guy was here in Hogwarts, apparently he had fit the bill. She saw his lips moving, and realised he was asking why she was here. When she said nothing, he somehow thought this meant to ask something else.

"What's your name?"

"Astra." The response was automatic, and when his face changed, she cursed herself internally. She was a Shadowhunter! Usually, she was a pro at keeping her emotions in check. Often, Astra was great at lying on the fly, because that was what she had been trained to do. But she was unable do that now, because she was overwhelmed, because she couldn't think.

Then Astra noticed a flash of blue from the corner of her eye, and turned to see a girl with clockwork tattoos. Before the guy could respond, or before he had even noticed the girl, the world was pulled out from under her, and she was falling. Down, down, down... down a rabbit hole...

***

_Drip... drip... drip..._

Astra opened her eyes, and had to close them because a raindrop fell into one. She was laying down on pavement, on her back on the ground. She turned her head to the side and opened her eyes again. After a second, she realised where she was. She should have been shocked, but everything was still happening so fast, and she felt like her brain had short circuited. She took a deep breath, stood up, and went inside the institute, everything so heavy on her mind and heart. Mechanically, Astra went through the halls to her room, changing into black sweatpants and a baggy grey t-shirt. Looking around her room, she knew Amelia wasn't here. She went to her aunt's room. Aunt Katy was fast asleep in her room, and Amelia was in her crib, fussy in her sleep.

Amelia was only just starting to speak properly, and only knew a few real sentences. Often, she would just say key words, and whoever she was talking to had to work the rest out. She was a warlock, so her skin was light purple, with designs etched into it that she was born with. Her hair, still short with her age, was bright blonde, and her eyes were blue, bright like the sky. Astra reached into the crib and took her daughter into her arms. Amelia stirred slightly.

"Mama?" She cooed groggily.

"Shh... shh... shh... It's ok sweetie," Astra soothed, whispering so she didn't wake up Amelia more, and so that she didn't alarm Aunt Katy. Amelia yawned, letting out a content noise as she nestled into her mothers chest, and fell back into a deep sleep. Astra went back to her room, and settled into her bed, then fell asleep, comforted by knowing her child was safe in her arms...

***

Jay's full name was Jeremy Bloodwick. He was 5'8, he had dirty blonde hair, warm grey eyes, and when he wasn't on mission, he wore black t-shirts and dark jeans. And right now, he was scared.

Jane Doe had no idea what her real name was. After she was attacked by a werewolf, she woke up with no memory, three bleeding gashes on her neck, and blood matted into her long brown hair. Astra and Jay had found her, bleeding and about to shift for the first time, and they had taken her somewhere safe, and taken care of her. She had soft brown eyes that turned green when she was angry or upset, or about to shift. She was 5'6, and often wore white t-shirts with black zip-up sweaters and tan leggings. She had slightly enhanced strength because she was a werewolf, and she looked pretty, but she didn't put a lot of effort into staying fit. And right now, she was freaked.

This morning, she and Jay had gotten a call from his Aunt Katy, who said Amelia was gone, that she hadn't been in her crib this morning. Aunt Katy, or Katherine Hollow, was 5'7, with blue eyes and dirty blonde hair like Jay's. Like Jay and Astra, she was very fit and exercised regularly, as all shadowhunters did, because they had to for their occupation. When Jay's mother had moved here to live with her husband, Aunt Katy had come with her. Now that Jay and Astra's parents had been transferred to Idris, Aunt Katy was looking after them. Aunt Katy had been so kind to Jane, and she was always there when Jane needed her. She also looked after Amelia whenever Astra, Jay, and Jane were all hanging out together outside of the institute (usually with Ricardo, depending on their relationship status at that time).

Right now, the three of them were in the institute, searching hard for Amelia. Jay was on the floor with his face pressed against the carpet looking under the couch. Suddenly, Jay jumped up, eyes wide. Jane and Katy looked at him.

"What?" Jane asked him, hopeful that he had figured something out.

"Astra's room! We need to check Astra's room, she might have went looking for her mom!" Before he had even finished, all three of them were up and charging down the hall, racing to find out if Amelia was there. Once they arrived outside the door to Astra's room, they came to a screeching halt. They took a moment, looking at each other. Cautiously, Jay opened the door... they all looked in, and were shocked at what they saw. Yes, Amelia was in there, but so was Astra! Astra was there, on her bed, like she had never been gone. Amelia was sleeping in her arms, like she always did. They all stared.

"...Astra?"


	17. Breath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunter leaves Hogwarts, which triggers some strange events.

**Third Person POV**

"...Astra?"

Jay's voice was breathless. His face, too. Everything in him, so on the surface even a stranger could see it, conveyed breathlessness, laced with hope and relief.

Astra lay there with Amelia, still sleeping. Though she did not stir, Jay let out a breath of laughter, closing his eyes and slumping against the door with relief. Jane noticed his hand resting on his chest, just above his heart - right over his parabatai rune. He opened his eyes and looked at Jane and Aunt Katy.

"I was so worried about Amelia, I hardly noticed how content Astra felt today. She's been home since this morning - I could feel her not being stressed anymore since I woke up." His tone as he spoke was mildly amused, making light of his mistake now that he knew neither Astra of Amelia were currently in danger. Total honesty, this surprised no one. Shadowhunters lived on life and death situations, survived them daily, and rarely dwelled on them unless under certain circumstances. "What ifs" just aren't as important when so constant. When everyone lives, you make your peace, move on, and grow with experience.

Amelia stirred in her mothers arms. She shifted and slowly blinked her eyes open, grunting as she tried to escape the tangle of blankets entrapping her. Astra stirred in her sleep, allowing Amelia out. Amelia shifted over to the edge of the bed. She squirmed, wanting to get off the bed, but made timid by the height. Jay walked over, stepping lightly to avoid waking his sister. When he got over to Amelia, she smiled wildly, holding her arms up to reach him. Jay reached up and scooped her up into his arms, and she automatically wrapped her arms around his neck. "Jay-Jay!" She giggled loudly. Jay's eyes widened.

"Shh, shh! Not so loud Jellybean... " Jay looked at Astra with worry her slumber had been disturbed. She remained deep in sleep. Jay, still holding Amelia, crept out of the room, then Jane lightly closed the door. Once they were halfway down the hall, as if sensing the danger was over, squealed in delight. "To the kitchen!" She said, leaning slightly away from Jay to point where she wanted to go. Jay grinned at Jane.

"I guess she's hungry."

"Well," Aunt Katy said, "I suppose it is about time I made breakfast."

Jay laughed, and moved Amelia to his shoulder, running down the hall knowing she would love the rush. Amelia let out a cry of delight, glee evident on her face...

***

Astra reached out groggily, wondering where Amelia was. When she felt no more than an empty bed, she opened her eyes. Maybe someone else might be worried by the empty room that greeted her, but for Astra, it was fairly routine. Amelia often woke before she did, usually because she was exhausted from a mission, and so Jay or Aunt Katy would come get her.

Almost immediately after she closed her eyes to return to sleep, she felt the air leave her lungs and memories hit her like a train. _Breath..._

She had been in the wizarding world.

_Ugh!_

She groaned and opened her eyes. She took a moment to just lie there, pondering recent events. After sleeping, the world was once again moving at an acceptable pace, and now she was able to think over what had happened in the past thirty-six hours. She took in a deep breath, and allowed herself to believe that all would be well.

It happened. It had happened, and she had almost died, but now it was over. Not only was she still alive, but she was home. She had no intention of going back to meet this 'Draco'. He was not her brother. Jay was her brother, and she did not want nor need another one. Nothing against 'Draco', but she had left behind the name Malfoy long ago, and all that came with it. It was over, and she was just fine.

Although, she was admittedly curious about the events of her escape... _Who was that girl with the blue hair? She had clearly been a warlock..._ _Hmm..._  

Perhaps she had saved the warlock once, and this had been a favor. It seemed the most plausible explanation.

Taking another deep breath, she welcomed the calmness associated with the action and closed her eyes. It happened. Time to move on now. Still sleepy, she slowly got up and got ready. She had a quick shower and brushed her teeth, brushing her black hair and pulling it up into a high ponytail, the purple streaks perfectly visible. Then, she did her make-up. After taking off her old make-up, she used foundation and concealer, following with thick winged black eyeliner and mascara. She did her black eyeshadow smoky, and added just a tiny bit of sparkling silver to help the effect, and by the end, her blue-grey eyes were sharp and piercing. She finished with her light cream-colored lipstick, making it shine via lip-gloss.

She didn't always wear this much make-up, but stressed out from recent events, the familiar action calmed her.

Now done with all that, she got dressed, pulling on thick black leggings with some socks, and pulling over them tan knee-high leather boots. She topped it off with a fitted deep forest green long-sleeve V-neck, with a thin white undershirt (a spegetti-strap tank top, slightly visible below the bottom of the green shirt). In all honesty, Astra only put this time into her appearance today because it gave her time to gather her thoughts and emotions.

Now ready, she went off to find the rest of her family.

***

Poppy and Evelyn yelled after Hunter as he walked away through the rain. Jackson was holding Evelyn back from running to tackle him. Just this morning they had been speaking to Draco Malfoy about his sister - apparently she had been that girl they had saved yesterday. But that had been this morning, and it was evening now.

Hunter had known it was important, but all he could think of was how he had also been discharged that morning. All he could think of was that he was free to go.

Because that was what he had been dreading for some time now. And now, this was when he had to leave. He had to say goodbye to his friends now, to his sister. His old friends... they were so old...

All morning he had been fighting back tears. For a long time, he had tried to ignore it, to let it go, to forget how it all just slipped passed him and he missed it. To forget all that time he spent not moving, not aging, not living. He had to live. He had to _breath,_ he couldn't breath!

He had to go live, to find a new life, because heaven knows there was nothing left in his old one. Not now, ever since he woke up.

Since he woke up, he had been suffocating, and he had to teach his lungs to fill with air again. It just wasn't possible here, surrounded by the ghosts of his past. He had to go, and he was going now, walking away as Evelyn and Poppy yelled after that, trying to ignore the ache in his heart as he did.

"Hunter no! You can't leave! HUNTER!" Evelyn all but shrieked.

"STOP!" He yelled back, turning. Both Evelyn and Poppy froze, but Hunter couldn't take it anymore. He had loved them, but he had to go away now. Still, when he turned, he felt his own face soften. He smiled sadly at them.

"I'm sorry, Evelyn. But I can't stay here."

"Why not?" It was not Evelyn's voice, but Poppy's. She stared after him, unshed tears in her eyes. Hunter sighed. He had told them, but they had been to hysterical to listen. He met eyes with both of them, his face solemn.

"I never aged," he said. "I'm the same age I was, and you aren't. My life is gone. It slipped right past me and I never even blinked. I love both of you... except I don't know either of you. All those years of growth and change, and I wasn't here. I did change, though, and I see the way you both keep looking at me... because I'm different too. So I can't stay here. Poppy..." He locked eyes with just her now. "I look at you, and I can see it. All those years I missed right there in front of me. I see a porch and a white picket fence, a house and kids. A wedding, and a ring you'll never have from me." The tears flew freely down her face now, and he knew she saw all those things too. He looked at Evelyn. "And you... there aren't even words for the years I missed with you, sis... so I'm sorry, because it can't ever happen now. It flew past, and I can't stay here with all those 'what ifs' following me. So, I gotta go now."

With those words, and a heavy heart, he reached back for his wand. He took it out of his pocket, and apparated, dropping his wand as soon as he did so. It fell to the ground as he disappeared to the muggle world.

It hurt. Quite a bit, actually, it hurt. But it was over now... he could _breath_ now.

Then suddenly, out of nowhere, a huge animal hurled into him, and he stumbled into a back alley. There were claws at his chest, but he was so shocked he not only didn't feel it, he didn't even scream. Then, for no apparent reason the creature - a wolf - fled.

He had no choice but to just lay there, gasping for breath. It was still raining, and he stared up into the sky as the water came right at him. Then there was a female voice, a cry of 'Oh my god!', and someone was kneeling next to him, a hand on his bleeding chest. He heard them make a phone call as the world became blurry. He heard them tell him he would be alright. The world came into focus for just a second.

"What's your name?" The woman's voice echoed in his ears.

"H-Hunter... Clement," he choked out, his own voice faint in his ears.

Then there was another presence, and he was looking into piercing grey-blue eyes. He was told he would be ok, and he believed that now. He thought they moved him to a car, but there was another pain now, deep in his bones, and he was hardly aware of anything now.

He was bleeding, in pain, and unsure. But there was something he had seen in those eyes. And somehow, now, he could still breath.

 


	18. Turning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunter turns into a werewolf for the first time.

**Third Person POV**

Jay drove faster than the speed limit as they rushed to the institute.

Not that this was an issue, they were glamoured so that mundanes couldn't see them. Still, he drove so fast that it made Astra's body feel weird when she leaned forward. She stayed against her seat, disliking the feeling. This is what told her Jay was speeding, she didn't know by just looking for that. The reason for this was that there had been little time to look forward between glancing at the back seat every second.

At this point, Astra was regretting sitting up front, rather then in the back with the boy 'Hunter Clement'. She wished she and Jane were reversed right now - that she was back there with that poor mundane boy (or rather, lycanthrope now). She wished she was back there because, for some reason, she cared a lot about this, and was very worried. As soon as they got to the institute, Jay swerved the car to a stop, and Astra was jumping out of the car before Jay could even get the keys out, and she opened the door to him. She activated her strength rune again, and as she had done before to get him in the car, put her arms under his knees and back, lifting him easily.

After everyone else was out, the car kept moving. _Probably going to park,_ she thought somewhere in the back of her head. The main part of her brain, though, was completely focussed on her running towards the doors to get the guy contained. Jane was already there, holding open the doors for her.

"ACH!" Hunter let out a scream of pain, and there was an audible _crack!_ Astra winced as she glanced down, seeing his calf looking unnaturally shapen.

"It's happening!" Jane yelled as they ran through the halls of the institute. "You don't think I know that!" Astra snapped. They reached the door to the room where they contained threats, and Jane opened it. They kept hearing sickening cracks and noises as Hunter screamed and changed, looking less and less human as his first change into a wolf continued to mishape his body.

The room was large, and though they had never called it that, it looked rather like a dungeon. It was a big cold room made of stone, with pillars that had shackles built into them.

"If we use chains, remember to go iron, not silver. We don't wanna give this guy any scars." Jay, who had just caught up to them said. Before Astra could formulate a response, Hunter thrashed in her arms and fell to the ground, leaving her with her arms flailing from her failed attempt to catch him.

"No time. Besides, he isn't dangerous, he's just in a lot of pain. Also, when you guys found me, the chains really hurt, and I didn't need that with everything else that was happening and all the other pain." Jane replied to Jay, her eyes on Hunter with a gaze if complete sympathy. A flash of guilt overtook Jane's face.

"Jane, I'm so-"

"SAVE IT! We need to leave, NOW!" Astra screamed at the two. There was no time for this right now, Hunter was almost full wolf now. Astra grabbed Jay and Jane's hands and dragged them out of the room, closing and locking the door on their way out.

***

_"_ _**What** _ _is going on!?"_

Astra, Jay, and Jane all looked up to see Aunt Katy standing there with Amelia at her side. Aunt Katy was holding little Amelia's hand as the toddler figited and looked around. When her gaze landed on Astra, she tilted her head.

"Why you sweaty Mama?"

"Uh-" Astra looked up at Aunt Katy. "We... Jane found a um..." Aunt Katy raised her eyebrow at Astra, who didn't usually stutter.

"There's a werewolf... we found him right after he was scratched." Understanding passed over Aunt Katy, and they both glaced at Amelia. While the guy was not at fault, not in control, and most likely not a bad person, he was unaware of his surroundings. While they were more than capable of handling this, Amelia was only a kid, and they all wanted to make sure she was safe.

Astra walked ove to her daughter and knelt to be eye level.

"Hey sweetie, do you wanna hang out with Aunt Katy and Uncle Ricardo right now?"

Aunt Katy and Ricardo had been on and off from before Astra had even come to the institute (though they were off at the moment she had arrived). While they weren't married, he had been such a consistent factor in Astra's life that he was basically her uncle. He had his own apartment away from the vampire den, and worked night shifts for a construction company. Also, since Astra and Jay's parents lived in Idris since they she was fifteen (ad Jay was sixteen), and they hadn't been since Astra decided to keep Amelia, Katy and Ricardo were basically her grandparents, and Jane and Jay were her godparents.

Amelia loved Ricardo. He was always really good with her, and she loved going to his place. While Katy took out her phone to text Ricardo and tell him her and Amelia were coning over, Amelia's eyes widened with excitement.

"YES! Yes, yes, yes!" She grinned widely, showing off a missing front tooth as she jumped up and down. Aunt Katy looked at her niece.

"You'll need to get him food, their always really hungry after turning the first time."

Astra nodded. "That's a good idea. You want me to drop you off?"

"Good idea. Let's go."

Astra turned as Jay threw her the keys, catching them in midair as she rushed Aunt Katy out the door with her daughter.


	19. Werewolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Astra talks to Hunter.

**Third Person** **POV**

An hour later, Astra pulled back into the institute parking lot, behind the building. Werewolves were very hungry after their first transformation, so she when she'd gone through the drive through at McDonald's, she had ordered more food than she could carry. After she pulled in, Jane came out of the building to help her, and took some bags.

"Has he turned back yet?" She asked. Jane nodded.

"When the growling stopped, Jay went in. His clothes were shredded, of course, and he was shaking and completely out of it. Jay washed him and dressed the guy in some of his clothes." She filled Astra in on all that had happened. Astra eyes her a moment.

"Did the clothes fit?"

"Suprisingly, yes. If course, they are loose in some places, but not half bad." They walked through the institute, heading for the infirmary. It was a large room filled with clean white linen beds. There was a fire pit in the middle of the room with thick bricks around it going in a larger circle than they had to, forming a sitting place. There were a few spare stele's on it so that one could just use an iratze, but they also had real medical supplies in case something happened to a person who wasn't a Shadowhunter.

She and Jane put the food on the bed by Hunter's, the drinks going on the tray for his bed. Astra started to unload the food on said tray.

"You gave him morphine already, yes?" She asked.

"Yep, all taken care of." Jane gave her a smile, and then left her alone with the boy. Astra continued to unload the food when she saw movement from the corner of her eye. She looked up and saw him waking.

***

The first thing he noticed was how dry his throat was. Hunter breathed in deeply, but winced as it emphasised the dry feeling in his throat. Then he felt a hand at the back of his head, and his head was being lifted slightly. There was a straw and his lips, and before he could question anything, he immediately started drinking. It was water, and it felt amazing o his throat. He soon finished the beverage, and only then did he open his eyes.

When he did, he saw a familiar looking girl, probably a few years older than him. She was looking down at him, and though she was familiar, he couldn't remember seeing her before. They locked eyes for a moment, but then she glanced away before handing him a burger. His stomach growled, and he dug into it, finishing it way to quickly. She gave him another burger, with fries this time, and he ate it a bit slower. She had one too, now, though se ate much more slowly than him. After he finished what he had, she handed him another again, also with fries. She also gave him a drink, this one Coca-Cola, rather then water. There was a small silence as the two of them ate, him now going at a much slower pace than him.

What was the last thing you remember?" She asked him. He paused for a moment, thinking.

"I uh..." He frowned. Did she know about the wizarding world? Could he even risk it?

"I had left where I was uh... living. I had..." he paused, wondering what to say. "I had just woken up from a coma, and I needed just... I... had to leave, I couldn't..." He voice drifted as the memory of what happened next came back to him. "There was... this animal, and-" his eyes widened as he looked up at the girl. "You were there." He realised why she looked familiar. "You- you were there, after, you helped when I-" then the truth crashed into him like a train, and all the memories returned at once as what happened played back in his head.

"Oh..." his voice was small and soft as she looked him in the eye. He looked up to meet her gaze. "I'm a - ?"

"Yes." She answered softly, sympathy lacing her voice. He frowned. "Are you-"

"No," she shook her head. He looked up again.

"What are you?" His voice wasn't accusing or suspicious, simply wondering. She took a deep breath, locking eyes with him once more.

"I'm what they call a shadowhunter. And... all those stories you grew up hearing are true."

***

Hunter took a sip of his drink, still processing all the information that had just been thrown at him. The girl gave him the moment he needed. Early on in the conversation, he had to admit he was a wizard - or had been. (He had, however, withheld details on how he had been stuck in an alternate dimension.) Now though, he had no intention of going back to the wizarding world. She had acted a little funny when he had told her, but she was fairly ok with it. Apparently she had already known about the wizarding world, though she hadn't said how.

_"So wait," he had said, "I thought werewolves inly turned on full moons, and I thought they were never in control."_

_"Those are wizarding world werewolves, they turn because of a curse that was created a century or so ago. You transform because of a demonic disease you were infected with. Aside from the wolf thing, it really doesn't effect you much, although it does give you an advanced healing factor and a longer life span. So it isn't_ quite _as crappy as it seems."_

Once they had finished talking, he ad asked what would happen when he was healed.

"When your fully recovered, you'll meet the pack." She told him, and he was realised something.

"Wait, what's your name?"

She smiled. "Astra," she said. "Astra Bloodwick."


	20. The Pack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunter meets the London Pack.

**Third Person POV**

It was an interesting few days of recovery. Apparently, they were very happy his memories were intact. He hadn't realised why until he met Jane, who had forgotten everything after her first transformation. She had helped him get a clear picture of what life in the pack would look like. It actually sounded fairly nice. He had come to accept being a werewolf better then one would think.

In a very strange way, it was refreshing. Like it solidified the exact fresh start he had been working for. Perhaps it would be different if he was a wizard type werewolf, and would never have true control of himself whenever he turned, or even any control on the turning itself. But from what Jane told him, he could get total control relatively quickly with some practice and training. Jane was usually with Jay whenever she visited, so he quickly picked up on the fact that the two were dating.

He and Jay had started off a little akward, as they were unsure of what to talk about, but the guy was cool, and Hunter believed he was trustworthy.

Then there was Astra, who was fast becoming a close friend. She told him that, if he wanted, he could probably still use magic via wand.

 _"Even if_ _you're_ _never_ _going_ _back," she_ _had_ _said, "_ _theres_ _no reason you_ _shouldn't_ _use_ _all_ _available_ _assets. A_ _Warlock_ _could probably_ _make_ _you a wand."_

He had said he would think about it, and he would, but it seemed unimportant for right now. By the end of the week, he was back on his feet and ready to go meet the pack. 'Werewolf healing!' Jane had told him. 'One of the few perks.'

She left with him, bringing him to a large house that the whole pack shared. It was really big, but with the entire pack contributing to rent, easily affordable. There was enough room for everyone, too.

"Why are you frowning?" Jane asked after they pulled up.

"When you said the whole pack contributes to rent, does that mean... I need to get a job?"

He did not appreciate the laughter that followed.

***

When Amelia came back after spending a few days at Ricardo's with Aunt Katy, Astra's heart melted at her first action. As soon as Amelia saw her, she cried out "Mama!", and ran to Astra as she called back "Hey there pumpkin!", and she scooped up her daughter (who was already jumping into her arms), spinning her around in the air. After coming to a stop, she had a small conversation with her Aunt and Uncle about how Amelia was.

"She wasn't any trouble?"

"A few things here and there, but nothing she doesn't do here. She had some trouble sleeping." Astra raised her eyebrow.

"Really? Because I thought she only had trouble sleeping when Ricardo gives her caffeine." After she spoke, glaring slightly at her uncle, he seemed to find the floor very fascinating suddenly.

"Well, I should go!" He said.

"Hey, don't you da-" before Astra could finish, he took off with vampire speed.

"UNCLE RICARDO!"

***

There was one thing Hunter quickly learned after stepping into the house.

If your the new guy, always be ready to _duck_.

Hunter walked into the house, and immediately had to hit the deck to dodge an empty plastic water bottle. Jane (who was behind him) instinctively caught said water bottle, and looked at him with surprise. Hunter heard a round of laughter and looked up to see the pack. They were all looking at him, not maliciously, but they were most defiantly sizing him up.

"The new guy has good instincts. This is gonna be _so fun!_ " One if the guys said. He was shorter, only 5'3, and he looked young, only fifteen or sixteen. His hair was a sort of bronze-brown colour, with green eyes and freckles on his face, which seemed to still have some baby fat on it. He was grinning at Hunter, like he was a puzzle the guy was looking forward to solving.

Hunter looked at Jane.

"You're the new guy. So, now we all need to find ways to prank you, embarrass you and outsmart you." She explained.

"And it looks like we have a challenge!" Said another guy. This one was blonde with brown eyes, but unlike the other one, this guy was freakishly tall, at least 6'3. Aside from the hight, he was fairly average in his appearance. "When Jane first came, we got her in the face easy."

"Shut _up_ , Derek!" She snapped at the tall guy.

"Hang on," Hunter cut in, "so while I'm the new guy, I am a target at all times. When do I _stop_ being the new guy?" He would _not_ be embarrassed or anything if there was another option. If there was an out, he was determined to take it.

"Depends," Freckles explained to him. "Either after you've been here a year," _too long from now,_ "after another person joins the pack," _too unpredictable to wait for, I_ _can't_ _count on that,_ "or after you can do to all of us what we're trying to do to you." _Bingo._

They all looked at him, seemingly trying to figure out what option he would go for.

They were right.

This was going to be _fun._


	21. Phobia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunter finds out Astra's from the wizarding world.

**Third Person POV**

Hunter looked at the intricate system he had set up.

Somehow, it seemed he was the only one in the house unafraid of spiders or other bugs. In the month he had been here, he had been pranked relentlessly, and he was not going to wait through a whole year of this.

 _"It's_ _not_ so _bad once_ _you_ _get used to it,"_ Jane had said.

He was **not** going to get used to it. He absolutely refused.

So instead, he had gone out to get hundreds of rubber bugs, and he had rigged up a net above the kitchen, and after the whole pack was here for breakfast, he would pull on a rope hidden behind the refrigerator, and unleash his reign of terror on his pack.

Of course, all this was only to stop the pack from their games on him. It had nothing to do with how he had been completely ignored by Astra the past few days. Astra, who had been one of the best friends he'd had in the past five weeks.

Hunter shook his head and let go of that train of thought as people started to file into the kitchen. He was waiting, eating a bowl of cereal to look less suspicious than if he was just standing around. They were all tired, so they barely even noticed anything.

Except for Jane. Because _of course_ Jane notices. She was the last to come in, and immediately took notice. She looked at him and narrowed her eyes, eyeing him suspiciously.

"What are you doing?" She asked as he stood up to put his bowl into the sink. Lucky for him, no one glanced up until Janenspoke to him, at which point other tool notice. Derek grinned at him.

"Haven't you given up yet, Clement? After the last few pitiful times, you should know nothing you do will surprise us." Hunter nodded, putting in a very noticeably fake act of defeat.

"I suppose you're right," he said, backing up slowly in the direction of the fridge. Now, everyone was looking at him warily. He was by the fridge now. "But you can surprise me. For example!" He slid his hand behind the fridge, and the whole room tensed, knowing _something_ was about to happen.

"The fact that you're all afraid of bugs was very surprising." He pulled the rope before they had time to even register his words, and hundreds of rubber bugs came raining down.

***

"That was cruel." Jane told him.

After he had unleashed the bugs, all the screams had made it very that he was the only one who had known they were fake. Of course, he had bolted, and had hidden away for at least an hour. When he came back, most of the pack was bitter, while others either found him hilarious or respected his creativity with slight embarrassment. Jane was jumping back and forth between all the options.

"Well it worked. I'm not the 'new guy' anymore, now am I?"

"I'm not saying it didn't _work!_ I'm saying you could have given _me_ some warning! I thought we were closer than this, man!" Jane shook her head in annoyance. Hunter smiled at her.

"I'm sorry."

Jane rolled her eyes, but her expression did soften slightly. She jumped suddenly, jostling Hunter (who was on the same couch) and making him lean away from her slightly.

"Oh! Did anyone tell you about the party tonight?" She asked. Hunter frowned in confusion. "What?"

"Tonight there's this party down at the docks. The pack throws it every year, we invite a few vampires and warlocks and shadowhunters - some seelies too, but they have parties everyday so not many always show, but nothing personal. This will be the fifth year, and it's to celebrate how great it is here in London, especially on this side of town."

Hunter frowned. "What does that mean?" He didn't think he had said anything wrong, but the smile melted from Jane's face. She looked down.

"It isn't actually that normal, you know," she said. "It isn't normal for downworlders and shadowhunters to be close, or have a relationship, or to even talk in a civil way. And werewolves, we usually avoid and hate vampire. And it wasn't always like this here, when Astra and Jay's parents were still here. But then when Astra was about twelve, after Valentine died, then they moved to Idris permanently. And then a few years ago, they cut Astra off completely, and now they never even visit. And Astra and Jay are amazing, and they actually help downworlders whenever we need it. When something bad happens, we feel safe to call the shadowhunters, and we know they have our best interests at heart. They helped us come to peace with the vampires. Now we know that isn't normal to live so peacefully. So we celebrate."

Hunter looed down. "So I'm guessing we're going," he said, and she grinned. "Yep. I figured we would meet Astra and Jay there." Hunter tensed and Jane frowned. But she soon realised what was happening.

"She's been avoiding you, hasn't she?" Jane asked. Hunter looked away. Jane knew what was happening. She shouldn't meddle, but she saw where this was going, and she refused to allow this. Hunter and Astra would be great friends, and she had to ensure Astra didn't ruin it.

"We should talk."


	22. Don't Waste Timea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunter talks to Astra.

**Third Person POV**

When she was twelve, Katy and Ricardo had made Astra go to a few therapy sessions. Of course, the therapist had not been told everything, but had only known that Astra had gone through a trauma, with no real idea of what that had been.

Now and then, Astra might go to one, but more often then not, she can handle whatever it is she's dealing with. Astra had always been strong, and usually her first resort after a bad day was to hit something. She didn't know why today was a bad day, she had just woken up and been completely unmotivated to do anything. And then, of course, she had a bunch of crap to get done. So now, here she was in the training room, beating the lifeless punching bag until her hands were raw. After she used the healing rune, she went to take a shower and get ready for the thing tonight. She then stood in front of her closet, wondering what would work for tonight. In the end, she chose a vibrant crimson cocktail dress. It had a sweetheart neckline with a strap going from each shoulder around her neck and never meeting the back of her dress. The neckline only dipped slightly, and was relatively modest in length, ending just below her knees. It was tight at the top, but the parallel to where her ribcage ended, the dress poofed out, cascading down in waves of smooth, shiny silk. Over it, she wore a black leather jacket that ended where the dress poofed out.

She also had a fair few weapons hidden here in there, like under her jacket or in hidden pockets, with a seraph blade and stele hidden under the folds of her dress. Just to be safe, of course. She then finished the ensemble with some black leather ankle boots, then did some make-up. She barely touched her eyeshadow, instead applying winged eyeliner and mascara, coating her lips with a deep scarlet color to match her dress, adding a touch of lip gloss in order to make them shiny.

She put her hair in a messy high pony tail, allowing a few hairs to escape and frame her face. As she and Jay headed down to the docks, he asked her if Hunter was coming. She simply shrugged, replying "I don't know. I actually haven't talked to him in a few days."

Jay looked at her. "No."

"What?"

"Oh, Astra!" He threw his head back with a groan. "Please don't do this, not again."

"Do what?" She asked. He shook his head, but only sighed. "Just forget it."

Jay knew that Astra knew exactly what he was talking about. He also knew Astra, and nothing he could ever say would change her mind. He just wished she wouldn't push Hunter away, or that she would at least admit to what she was doing. But he knew why she did this, and he understood it. Between the Malfoy's and their own parents, she had every right to have trust issues. If it got super bad, he would make her go to another therapy appointment for professional help, but until Jay thought Hunter would give up on waiting for Astra to talk to him again, he decided to leave them be.

***

Mainly, the party took place in a huge warehouse at the docks. There were stings of lights inside, all of them multicolored, and as a whole the place was in low light. Tonight, it was almost like a club, with smoky air and a disco reflecting off of the multicolored lights, as well a DJ from the pack. There was also a lot of food (including some stored blood for vampires) and an open bar.

Still, there were a few people who had gone outside - half of which wanted quiet, some had followed there friends, and the rest either just wanted a place slightly more private. A few were even gonna jump off the docks to swim (which the weren't technically supposed to do, but no one called them out). Hunter was hanging out with some of his friends from the pack, and he saw Astra walk in with Jay. For reasons he would later blame on the alcohol (though he hadn't actually had any yet) his breath left him for a moment, and for a few seconds, the world seemed to disappear. In a haze, he realised Derek was calling his name. With a start, he looked up.

"Huh?" Derek looked at him a little weird, but then let it go. "I was just asking if you wanted a drink, I'm gonna go get some for everyone."

Hunter frowned. He hadn't had a drink since his time  _there_. Before that, he hadn't really had much anyway on account of his age. "Uh... yeah, sure," he said, deciding to give it a shot.

"You have a preference, or do you just want anything?" Derek asked him, already standing to go. Hunter just shrugged, not really caring. Derek came back and handed him a bottle of bear.  For a while, he just hung out with the pack, talking to his friends and sipping his drink occasionally. He barely noticed the slight fog that had enveloped his mind, though it was certainly not unpleasant. One of the guys noticed his very low alcohol tolerance, and went to tell the bartender to not let him have anything else. He agreed when they told him to go outside and get some fresh air, accepting the offered bottle of water. When he came back inside, he saw Astra.

She was standing by the bar, though there was no drink in front of her, and it seemed she was trying to avoid people as she stood a little bit away from the crowd.

Hunter didn't understand why he did it, but he saw her there, and he heard Jane's voice in his head telling him to give her time. Telling his that she would push him away, then call him to see if he came back. He remembered an eternity of nothing, stuck so far away from home in another universe with no time. With nothing.

He found himself walking towards her, and before he knew it, he was right behind her. She seemed to know when he was there, because she tensed slightly. He knew she was about to walk away from him without even a glance, and he placed a hand on her shoulder without thinking, and she immediately turned her head to meet his eyes.

"Hey, can I talk to you?" He asked, but did not wait for a reply as he led her into a small storage room, closing the door behind him. As soon as the door closed, she was staring at him, slightly surprised by his urgency. But he remembered all of Jane's words, and now he knew who she had once been. She had been Astra Malfoy, and he needed her to know him. Who he had been. He understood now why she didn't want to trust him, and it made sense... but he really needed her to know why she could trust him. He needed her to know that it had not only been her the Malfoys hurt.

Hunter had no idea why he needed her to know, just that he did.

"Wh-" before she could get in a proper word, he cut her off.

"I lied," he said. He then winced at his lack of tact, because that really was not the best way to start this conversation. She raised her eyebrows, and he had to admit that he wasn't quite sure where he was going with this.

"I lied," he repeated, trying to say this again. Internally, he was praying to God that his foot could just stay out of his mouth for the next five minutes. "I was never in a coma."

Astra eyed him with suspicion, leaning away from him slightly.

"Jane told me from the wizarding world-" her eyes widened "-and so I know that you know who You-Know-Who was. The Malfoys, they probably called him the Dark Lord."

Now she stepped back, her eyes like glass. He saw those eyes flicker to the door behind him, and knew she wanted to bolt. Astra was very fast, and Hunter knew he could not be able to catch up to her if she ran. He had to get to the point.

"He screwed me over too," Hunter said softly. Her gaze focused on him again, and he had to take a deep breath before he could continue. Hunter hadn't spoken to anyone about it since it happened, and it was harder than he had thought it would be. "I wasn't in a coma," he continued. "I was trapped in a parallel pocket universe where time doesn't pass. It never passed... You-Know-Who, he put me there for some experiment, and that... that was almost two decades ago. I only got back recently, and my lifer is gone." Astra was looking at him, and he took a deep breath and met her eyes. At some point while he was talking, his eyes had drifted to the floor. "My whole life, everything I knew - all of it just flashed past me. It's all gone, and I missed it. So I left... I had to leave, because every day I would wake up and see all the people that I used to know, and I just couldn't-" he had to stop talking to wipe moisture out of his eyes. He hated that he was crying right now, he hated that, but he didn't know how to talk about this without feeling it. He blinked a few times and took another breath. His gaze kept drifting to the floor, and he looked back up to Astra again. "I left," he said again, "and I wound up here. Now," he took a step towards her, "I'm trying to start over. Build myself a life again, pick myself back up... and Astra, I don't want to waste time. I've lost a lot of time, and I can't afford to lose another second or else I think I just might lose my mind. So please," he stared her in the eye, "please believe me when I tell you that I'm here. Don't push me away or test me, just trust that when I say I am here and that I'll come back, trust me enough to know that I mean it."

There was a moment of silence, and the entire time that no one said anything, Hunter's nerves were on high. Astra hesitated, then she wordlessly walked past him to the door, putting her hand on the doorknob. For a moment, Hunter couldn't breath. He had left himself exposed, spoken the most tortured part of his past, and it looked like she was about to leave.

Then she paused, turning her head to look at him.

"There's this really amazing coffee place by the Institute," she said. "You could, uh... maybe you could stop by tomorrow around noon, and I could take you there. We can... have lunch or something."

He felt something lift off his chest as relief filled him.

"Yeah," he said, "I'd like that."


	23. A Letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunter gets a letter.

**Third Person POV**

Needless to say, it had surprised the heck out of Jay and Jane when Astra was hanging out with Hunter the next day. They were (briefly) worried that Astra had fallen ill, but when she was revealed to be fine it confused them greatly.

Whatever Hunter had done, it had worked. Astra opened up to him more and more, and eventually, he even got to meet Amelia. He hadn't expected it when he found out Astra was a mother to a three year old - especially to a warlock - but when he looked at her, something about her body language told him not to ask how it happened.

Months began to slip by, and soon it had been a little more than a year since Hunter had joined their life. The sense of temporary now forgotten, Hunter was embedded in their lives, a now permanent part of them.

***

Amelia was at a magic lesson right now, (Astra had payed to have another warlock teach her how to use her magic since she turned four).

After Amelia was finished with lessons today, Aunt Katy and Uncle Ricardo would pick her up, and they would spend the night at his apartment. Uncle Ricardo now tool potions to glamour him, making him look to be Aunt Katy's age. This was just so it didn't look creepy when they were seen together, so people no longer though it was a guy in his early twenties dating someone in their forties.

The point being that Astra and Jay were home alone, and had invited Jane and Hunter. They all planed to sleep in the living room (which was also the library, and there was a small room off to the side that was the kitchen, so the dining room was also there. Basically, everything was in that room, because it was very large and therefore it made sense to have it serve multiple purposes). At the end, with many couches, was a decent - sized TV, and a coffee table as well to hold food and beverages while people watched a movie or whatever else.

Aside from sleeping there, the only special plans they had were pizza and chips with pop or beer. They decided to binge watch Friends throughout the evening.

Astra ordered the pizza, going for pick-up rather than delivery (because the institute was clamored as an abandoned church, and that was probably weird), and asked Jane and Hunter to pick it up on their way over. She then spent her time studying her copy of the grey book for the millionth time as Jay spent his in the training room mutilating a dummy. Astra had promised to get him when their friends arrived. She heard the sound of the loud creaking of the institute door opening and, knowing they had arrived, went to go get Jay.

 _Technically,_ downworlders weren't allowed in the institute. Only shadowhunters, and in very rare cases, a mundane who had been wounded by a supernatural - and even then, their memories were erased directly after. If shadowhunters didn't have a key, perhaps needing refuge in another cities institute, they could simply touch the door, and recognizing their angelic blood, the door would open to them. But when Astra and Jay, or even Aunt Katy were home, they would simply open the door to downworlders and there was no issue. For their friends though, they had received keys with the angelic rune on them, and the doors would recognize the rune before their blood, and allow them to pass. For Ricardo, there were charms that banned him for being undead. But behind the Claves backs, they had payed a warlock handsomely to remove the charms and keep quiet about it. They did a lot of things behind the Claves backs when it came to bending rules for downworlders. If it was ever discovered, they would be screwed.

Now that Jane and Hunter were here, Astra went to go get Jay.

***

They were all sitting there on the couches now, watching the newest Friends episode with old ones ready to go on tape. Jane and Jay shared one couch, spooning as the watched the show. Astra and Hunter shared another, Hunter on one end with Astra on the other, laying down on the whole thing with her feet over Hunters lap. He didn't seem to mind.

Then suddenly, from an open window, an owl silently flew in. Unnoticed by the rooms occupants, it dropped a letter on the window sill, and flew off into the night, which continued on without change.

Hours later the four friends argued over who was at fault in Ross and Rachel's break-up. Hunter and Astra thought Ross was to be blamed for not trusting Rachel enough, while Jane and Jay both thought Rachel should have stopped hanging out with Mark when Ross got uncomfortable.

Eventually, Hunter got up to trap another bottle of water. Something white caught the corner of his eyes, and he turned to see a letter on the window sill. He felt something drop in the pit of his stomach. Feeling lightheaded, he went a picked up the letter.

It was addressed to him. With a sinking feeling, he opened it...

_Dear Mr. Clement,_ it read, _we_ _believe_ _you should be made aware of the passing_ _of_ _Poppy Pomfrey, and know that_ _her_ _funeral will take place in_ _four_ _days time at Hogwarts._

_With deepest_ _condolences_ _,_

_Akiko._

 

_**To Be Continued...** _

 

**End of book One.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone :)  
> Hope all of you enjoyed that book! I'm working on the next one now, and I hope you all read it once it's been published.  
> Love you all, and I hope to see you again someday.

**Author's Note:**

> So just a quick disclaimer. You should know what belongs to JK. Rowling and Cassandra Clare. This goes for the whole book!  
> P.s. I know the captured are short, but their all o have time to write at once. Sorry, but I try to update often!


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